Foresight
by ScottyBotty
Summary: A new arrival at Beacon brings along his dark past, will this spell trouble for the students of Beacon, or will his demons set them free? (Obvious OC. Canon from volume one.) (Yes, I suck at summaries.) -Fan Art by Denzule-
1. Remnants

**Chapter 1: Remnants**

**A/N This is my first ever soiree into the art of fan fiction. It will mainly be focused on a new character and team RWBY with hints of JNPR and CRDL. I will say this though, it will take some time to get going, I tend to spend a lot of time on the descriptive side of things, but when it gets going the going gets good :)**

**As always this is my first story so a review and some constructive criticism would be appreciated.**

**But for now enjoy :)**

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The moon shone brightly in the dark and cloudless sky. A cool, crisp breeze blew through the trees and brushed against a lone figure's skin as he stood and stared at the broken orb that hung like a shattered pendant in the sky. He reflected on the events the orb would have bore witness to.

The world before man, dark, cruel, yet he imagined beautiful landscapes, untouched by the constructions of man. The creatures of Grimm were free, unabated in their actions. Terrifying, yet magnificent.

Man's birth into this world, their brief existence threatened by the darkness surrounding them, their light all but extinguished if it hadn't been for man's resourcefulness, strength and courage. With a natural resource they were able to wield nature's elements in their hands. Fire, ice and lightning, with it they forged a light amidst the darkness.

This element was aptly named, Dust.

From this newly forged light man created Civilization, technology, war, peace but most importantly, life. The world of Remnant lit bright by the expansive nations and cities that man forged in the darkness' absence.

However, light cannot shine without shadows, and amongst shadows lurked the most dangerous and heartless creatures to ever grace the planet's many continents.

One such continent was Vytal, which held the kingdom of Vale, and it was here amongst the trees of Forever Fall that the lone stranger stood. He was perched on a branch, high in the trees. He continued to stare at the orb. Contemplating the history of all the moons light touched. However the sound of cracking twigs snapped him back to reality, his prey was here.

The figure crouched low on the branch and watched his prey draw closer; his target was an Ursa Major. The creature was on all fours sniffing the ground and slowly advancing toward the lone figure's position. The Ursa was a large bear-like creature with black fur and bony spikes protruding from its back and arms as well as bone like armour covering most of its body, its face was also covered with a white bonelike mask that was covered in red detailing. Even amongst the darkness the lone figure could see the bright red glow of the Ursa's eyes.

'_Just a few more steps.' _the lone figure thought. He peered down at the ground below him; he could barely make out the faint glow of a stasis glyph marking the floor. The Ursa continued to advance, and the figure prepared to strike. Standing tall on the branch, he reached behind his back and unsheathed two large, slightly curved blades.

The Ursa drew closer and the figure switched his grip on his weapons, now he held the grips with the blades pointing towards the ground. This slight movement alerted the Ursa to his presence in the trees, but it was too late. The Ursa rose to its two hind legs and roared as it simultaneously took an extra couple of steps forward. The figure smiled knowingly as the Ursa took one last step with its right leg, and a bright blue flash illuminated the night sky as the stasis glyph was triggered. The Ursa continued to roar but other than that it was completely paralyzed; seizing his moment the figure took one step forward and let gravity lead him to his prey.

He landed on the Ursa with a thud as his two blades sank deep into its shoulders, the Ursa let out a howling scream of agony but the stasis glyph held him in place. Adjusting his position the figure got a foothold by using the protruding spikes from the Ursa's body. He removed his blades from the Ursa's shoulders, crossed his blades like a pair of scissors and placed them either side of the Ursa's neck. With the deftest of movements he 'closed' the scissors, the howling came to a sudden halt as the blades cut effortlessly though the creatures neck and its head rolled off backwards. The figure sprung backwards off of the Ursa and landed with all the poise and noise of a cat, just as the stasis glyph was beginning to give way.

Turning away, the figure began to leave the forest and headed back to civilization. He heard the unmistakable sound of the creature's body slumping to the ground just as a barely audible noise came from his arm. Sheathing his weapons on his back he rolled up his sleeve and his scroll opened upwards to display a new message:

_Mr Cross_

_A small reminder, the assembly begins at 10:00 AM. _

_A room is still available for you here, should you require it._

_We look forward to seeing you soon._

_Miss Glynda Goodwitch_

The figure stared at the message,

"Humph, this is the third message today. Guess they really don't want me to be late." He spoke softly to the wind. He looked at the time displayed on his scroll, 11:34 PM. "A message at this time? How do they know I haven't found somewhere else to sleep?" He pondered for a moment; it was rare for people like him to pass up a free bed, it would be even rarer for someone like him to be asleep at this time, too busy hunting or keeping innocents from harm. He stopped and stared back into the forest, the Ursa Major was wandering too close to the city. He chose to eliminate it before it had the chance to do any damage.

He stared back at the message, maybe it was best to call it a night. Who knows how taxing tomorrow might be. Closing his scroll he set off at a slight jog, in the direction of Beacon High.

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**Aaaaand there you have it, my first ever chapter. I'll try and update this as often as I can. I'm writing this story mainly for myself and my friends but I decided to put it here for others to enjoy :)**

**Also sorry for the lack of action and romance, as I said it will take a while to get going, the first few chapters will be building blocks and then the good stuff will come.**

**Anyway, I'll be going now, have a good life! :)**


	2. The Beacon in the Night

**Chapter 2: The Beacon in the Night**

The jog, and occasional flat out sprint, took a lot longer for him to reach the foot of Beacon than he believed. Cross' journey took him through the agricultural and residential districts of Vale, both of which were much larger than he had expected. He reminded himself not to take the advice of his elders too literal:

'_It's situated in a rather small city named Vale' _the Elders informed him.

'_Rather small my ass' _Cross retorted. He looked at his wrist and tapped his scroll; it opened up and showed him only the most important information. His Aura levels, his location and the time, which was 12:24 AM.

Almost an hour had passed since he set off and he still had a ways to go yet. '_I hope they don't mind me arriving so late' _Cross looked at his Aura levels, which were still near to full. Cross smiled, tracking, trapping and dispatching an Ursa Major took almost nothing out of him. This was surprising; Cross remembered the foolish time he got himself trapped in a Deathstalker lair. The massive scorpion like creature did not take kindly on his intrusion.

'_Let's never do that again' _he thought to himself, remembering how he almost perished in that god forsaken cave.

He looked back at his Aura levels, '_I could use my Semblance to speed things up' _Cross frowned however, as the unique Semblance required immense concentration, which was something his late night run had took out of him. There were other ways to trigger the Semblance: '_Anger' He thought, _no go, there was nothing to be angry about. _'What about a life threatening situation' _Cross scanned his surroundings. He was standing in the middle of a very peaceful and very quiet residential area, there was no threat of death here '_Death from boredom perhaps' _Cross smiled gently to himself. '_More running it is then'_ he decided and began is hike up the incredibly steep hill located at Beacon High south side.

Cross was beyond caring about the time when he finally reached the top. The view before him was breath-taking. Beacon High was an incredibly huge and incredibly beautiful academy. Before Cross lay a beautiful white stone path leading directly to Beacons main entrance. The complex was surrounded by a large aqueduct style archway that stretched around, which he assumed was, the entirety of Beacon, with a smaller second ring just inside it, a stone path was built between the two which Cross assumed would lead you all the way around Beacon. Further down the path was a large fountain with a statue erected in the centre of it. The statue was of a Human hunter and a Faunus huntress standing triumphantly on top of a defeated Ursa Major. Cross marvelled at the academy itself, dozens of buildings joined together to form a massive circular shaped complex, with a massive tower jutting from the centre towards the sky. All of which was made out of a beautiful white stone. Along the main path to the entrance hung large, red portrait banners bearing an emblem which Cross was not familiar with.

Cross had seen beautiful architecture before but this was truly something. Realising that he'd been gawking for far too long Cross proceeded towards the main entrance. As he approached he saw two guards carrying long halberds talking to one another, one was leaning against the wall whilst the other guard was standing talking to him but had his back to Cross.

The guard against the wall spotted Cross approaching and immediately stood straight while firmly grasping his halberd, the second seeing his friends reaction spun around and, spotting Cross followed suit, both held their halberds at the ready, prepared to fend off an attack.

'_These guys seem a little jumpy' _Cross thought to himself, his pace slowed to an eventual halt as he looked down at his attire. A smile crept across his face as he finally clocked on as to why.

Cross was almost covered in an all dark green combat outfit. His feet were covered with soft, rubber shoes, these allowed him to walk or even sprint while making little to no contact noise with his feet to the ground. His trousers were of a soft leather material, they were tight at the ankles but were slightly baggy at his thighs and crotch area, and this allowed for extra freedom when he crouched, and performed combat rolls or any other physically intensive manoeuvres. His torso was covered with a jacket made out of the same material, the jacket clung tightly to his body, the front was closed up with a mixture of buttons and ribbons which stretched from the base of the jacket halfway up his body, while the rest of which was just the same soft leather fabric. Anyone who saw Cross probably wondered how on Remnant you were supposed to take the damn thing off. The sleeves covered all of his arms, though Cross had chosen to roll them up to just below the elbow, and his hands were covered with fingerless gloves. The entire outfit was made in two layers, the first layer was a dark green silk fabric that was smooth and excellent to feel against his skin, the second, was the dark green soft leather outer layer. A scroll could be seen strapped to his left arm. Cross however thought the clothes weren't the real reason why they were spooked: obviously visible, protruding from Cross' back were two handles which were attached to two large blades, and either side of those, sticking out from above his shoulders were the fletchings of a dozen or so arrows located within two quivers.

All in all, Cross would have appeared to be an incredibly dangerous man fully ready and equipped for combat. Throw in the time of night and Cross would look like an Assassin come to strike in the dark.

'_If I were an Assassin, I would hardly walk up to the main door' _Cross shook his head and approached the two guards, both gripped their halberds tight and pointed them at Cross.

"Hold it right there, identify yourself?!" The first guard barked.

Cross sighed, "I'm here to see the Headmaster" Cross tried to look as nonthreatening as possible, even going so far as to raise his hands in defence. "My name is Alexander Cross, I was invited here by Ozpin himself." Cross explained.

Both guards appeared to relax a little bit.

"My apologies Mr Cross, we were expecting you earlier in the day" The second guard sounded genuinely sorry. This caused the first guard to relax, and they both lowered their halberds. "I shall inform someone that you have arrived"

"Thank you" Cross smiled and turned from the guards. He could hear the guard begin a one sided conversation. He stared back up at the moon again.

A few moments passed when the main doors finally swung open, this snapped Cross back into reality and he turned to face the man who exited from the building.

It was a middle-aged man with tousled grey hair and thin brown eyes. He was wearing shaded glass spectacles and a dark-green scarf with a small purple cross-shaped emblem on it. His torso was covered with an unzipped black suit over a black-buttoned vest, with a green under-shirt underneath. He was also wearing black trouser shoes and long, dark-green pants. In his right hand he carried a mug bearing an emblem on it, Cross recognised it as the same emblem that he saw on the large red banners from before, and he now assumed that was Beacons official emblem.

The man stepped up to Cross, his height only just outdoing Cross', while the guards stood just behind him.

A few moments had passed and the man still said nothing, seconds turned to minutes and the silence was becoming unbearable. Cross decided to be the first to break the silence.

"You're late" the man pointed out. Cross had barely opened his mouth.

"I got distracted" Cross informed him, reminding himself of the Ursa he dispatched. "I chose to go on a hunting trip" he further elaborated. The man merely took a sip from his mug and continued to stare at Cross.

"Any good game?" The older man questioned.

"Nothing worth mentioning" came Cross' response. The man merely smiled at this.

"Alex if you had killed a Nevermore you would still deem it 'not worth mentioning'" both he and Cross broke into a large grin. The man stretched his hand out and Cross took it in a firm shake.

"It's great to see you again Ozpin" Cross beamed.

"You too Alex" Ozpin smiled back. "Come…" Ozpin said placing a hand on Cross' shoulder "…Let me show you to your quarters" Ozpin turned and led Cross through the large doors. The guards now smiled at him as he passed them. Cross was led into a large open area with two staircases in front of them with a dozen corridors leading off in different directions. He already knew navigating this place was going to be a challenge. Cross followed Ozpin up one of the staircases.

"I don't suppose I could get a map of the school?" He asked. Ozpin turned back to him.

"I'll see that Miss Goodwitch sends you a map to your scroll as soon as possible." Ozpin replied.

Ozpin continued to lead him through a maze of corridors until they finally reached a large oak wood door set into the white wall.

"Here we are" Ozpin pushed open the door. Cross' face was immediately overcome with confusion. The room they stepped into was not that of a bedroom but instead an office. The far wall was mostly a large window that allowed complete view of the grounds below and that of the trees of Forever Fall. The walls were adorned with paintings and pictures ranging from beautiful landscapes to that of students celebrating victories or posing for tournament photos. In the middle of the room was a large oak desk on which either side were leather chairs.

"So, this is a lovely bedroom" Cross commented sarcastically.

"I'll take you to your quarters soon, but for now I would like to talk to you about your…" Ozpin hesitated "…condition" he finished. Cross sighed, he knew this talk was going to come up sooner or later but he had hoped he would at least get some shut eye first. "Please, take a seat" Ozpin held his hand out to one of the chairs as he walked around to the other side of the desk and sat down. Cross walked over to the chair but refused to sit, instead stood with his arms folded across his chest. Both he and Ozpin stared at each other.

"So?" Ozpin questioned. It wasn't much but enough that Cross knew exactly what he was getting at.

"I have things under control."

"Alex, the last time you told me you had it under control was right before committed murder, a crime that is not just swept under the rug here, like they do at Foresight. I can not and will not risk you spending life behind bars because of your condition!" The irritation and anger in Ozpin's voice was apparent. Cross couldn't help but wince at the reminder of his failure to keep calm, to stop himself overflowing with rage, to prevent his 'other half' from taking over, because of his failure five men lost their lives. The men were Faunus, humans that had animal features and characteristics, most humans suppressed the Faunus people, while the Faunus resorted to riots, or terrorism. These particular men were gloating about the innocents they killed, of their successful plan to bomb an airship full of people, an airship that he and his team were supposed to protect. The men were eventually captured and detained, and were awaiting transport to a prison. The gloats however got the best of Cross and he blacked out, the next thing he remembered was standing, covered in blood and surrounded by devastation.

Cross looked away from Ozpin, even though they were friends he understood the risk that he was taking by allowing him into Beacon, and the threat that it posed to his students. If there was one thing that he knew about Ozpin, was that he would never endanger the lives of his pupils needlessly.

"Afraid I might kill one of your students?" Cross asked nonchalantly.

"Something along those lines" he retorted.

Cross was unsure of why he himself was being so difficult, he guessed that maybe it was because he didn't like the surprise interrogation, or the assumption that he hadn't changed in three years. Never-the-less Cross actually had some good news on the matter.

"When I said that I have it under control, I truly do mean that"

"Oh?" was Ozpin's only response, his face showing surprise. Cross sat at the desk.

"A few months after you left Mystral for Vale I ran into an old tribe of Rinetian warriors" Ozpin merely listened carefully, occasionally taking a sip from his mug. "They had trained others with my condition, and said that they could help me 'become whole'" Cross raised his hands and made air quotes as he spoke. "I took a leave of absence from the academy to train with them for six months, every day was a trial, they taught me restraint, patience, tolerance but most importantly they taught me self-control. "

"For weeks they would alternate the days, one day they would keep me calm and at peace, the next day they would piss me off, rile me up and provoke me into rage. Eventually I was able to control both sides of me fluidly, sure, there was always the danger of losing control, but at least now I knew what I was doing and had a far better chance of restraining myself." Ozpin continued to listen; he had a calm but worried? No, a look of pity was on his face. "One week they would have me fight members of their tribe. The key was to stay calm throughout the fight, to suppress the urge to lose control. Failure to do so resulted in a severe lashing. Eventually, I got the technique down" Cross finished.

Ozpin continued to stare, "You were sixteen at this point?" Cross nodded. "There is a sixteen year old girl here starting her second year at Beacon. The idea of her being lashed puts a knot in my stomach" Ozpin chimed as he stared into his mug.

'_Only sixteen and already at her second year at Beacon.' _Cross thought to himself. '_Whoever this girl is she must be talented'_ he concluded. Most people are usually only seventeen when they start their first year at beacon, to be so young and already so far ahead…

"You misunderstand" Cross replied, choosing to continue the conversation. "You imagine her being lashed against her will, I chose this path for myself" Ozpin nodded at him.

"Very true Alex, a very cruel and harsh life you have had so far, and you're only eighteen. Perhaps your time at Beacon can add some happy memories" Ozpin smiled at him.

"I have happy memories" Cross shot back, "There was that one time I saved this professor from an Imperial Manticore" A crude smile crept across his face.

"Please" Ozpin said, waving his hand dismissively, "I had everything under control"

"Uh huh"

Ozpin smiled and led Cross out of the office. A few moments later they were at smooth metal door, which had a card scanner to its right. Ozpin pulled the card and handed it to Cross.

"This is your only access to your quarters. I suggest you don't lose it" Handing him the card Ozpin turned and left, " Remember" Ozpin called back.

"Assembly at ten, I know, I know." Cross called back as he swiped the card against the scanner. The door opened with light whoosh noise. He entered the room and looked around. It was a simple room, a window with a view of the forest, bed, cupboard, a set of drawers and a bedside table. There were two doors either side of the room, Cross presumed they led to the kitchen and bathroom respectively. He didn't care however; walking to the bed he began removing his weapon and clothes. He barely had his last item of clothing off him before he collapsed on the bed. Exhaustion and weariness over took him and it wasn't long before he fell into a deep sleep.

**A/N **I hope you enjoyed this considerably longer chapter. **Again sorry for the lack of action and fluffy stuff, building blocks and all that.**

**Again feel free to leave your thoughts of the story, reviews are always appreciated. :)**

**Anyway I'll show myself out, have a wonderful life. Ciao :)**


	3. Nightmares of a Happier time

**Chapter 3: Nightmares of a Happier Time**

**This chapter is entirely optional and holds no real influence over the rest of the story. If you wish to move on and meet RWBY feel free to do so, if not then read on. :)**

_Alex felt himself being lifted into the air and pulled into a warm embrace. The women who held him had the most beautiful features, soft pale skin, and ruby lips, her gentle silver eyes watching over him and long soft black hair that reached down to the base of her back. She reminded Alex of the angels that were in the stories that his father used to read to him before he went to sleep. She was his mother, perfect in every way._

"_Guess who is home?" The woman cooed. At that moment the front door opened and a tall burly man entered._

"_Hey, hey, there's my boy" The man beamed taking Alex from the women and holding him high in the air. "Miss me champ?"_

"_Uh huh" Alex reached his arms out to embrace the man in a hug. The man had short disheveled black hair with thin blue eyes. His features hard and a stubble beard covered his lower face. His father leaned over to his mum and kissed her softly on the lips._

"_Everything went OK?" His mum questioned._

"_Of course" his dad replied, "A simple psychiatric eval, the Docs say I'm all good" He returned his gaze to Alex and hoisted him back into the air. "It just means one less monster in the world, eh Alex?"_

_Alex didn't register what he was saying; he was enjoying being thrown into the air by his loving father._

"_Alright, alright" his mother interrupted, "I've kept him up late enough waiting for you to come home" She took Alex back and headed for the stairs. "Also I need to talk to you about something, Paul"_

"_What about" asked the man. The woman, either not hearing him or choosing to ignore him, didn't reply. "Athena?" his tone becoming serious._

"_I'll tell you once I put Alex to sleep!" she scolded the man for his impatience._

_Time seemed to speed up and Alex opened his eyes, he was warm and safe under the blanket of his comfy bed. The room shrouded in darkness except for a single beam of light that shone through the crack in the door as it hung ajar. Alex could hear voices coming from downstairs._

"…_and you're OK with it?" He could hear the unmistakable sweet sound of his mother's voice._

"_The man was a criminal and a pretty important one at that. This place will be a lot safer now that I put him in the ground!" came his father's reply, the sound of irritation clear in his voice._

"_Paul! Don't say such things!"_

_Time sped forward again, this time Alex was woken abruptly by the sound of something smashing followed quickly by a woman's screams. Sounds of crunching, and things being smashed, deafening gunshots rang throughout the house. Alex, panicking and terrified, ran from his room and went in search of his mother, he knew for sure she would keep him safe and make the loud noises stop._

"_MUM! MUM! MUM!" Alex screamed as loud as he could as he ran onto the landing and down the stairs towards the living room. The noises had stopped, all but a soft chewing noise. Alex reached the bottom of the stairs and turned into the living room. The view of a horror unimaginable to him was now being burned into his brain, an image that would haunt him until his final days._

_The living room was in pieces, everything was broken, the front door, tables, chairs, pictures were knocked over and the room was streaked with red. Alex stared down at a figure lying a meter away from him. A beautiful women, her body now disfigured and mangled, a large red stain pooling out from under her body, large gashes were seen across her body and face and a large bite mark could be seen on her throat, her beautiful silver eyes staring into nothingness. A bitter smell of iron bit at Alex' nose, as he looked away from the dead angel to a large man a few meters away, a gun visible in his right hand, and a large black fur creature crouched over him, the man's stomach was torn open and the creature had pulled his guts out and was idly chewing on them._

_Alex let out the smallest of whimpers as he stared at the carnage, the creature snapped its head up and stared directly at Alex, a hefty grunt left the creature's mouth and it dropped the man's innards. With a deafening howl the creature lunged, its fangs and teeth pierced Alex's small body._

Cross immediately sat up in his bed, his hands darting to his stomach and throat checking for wounds. His body was slick from the cold sweat that covered his body and soaked the bedding. He let himself take in a few large breaths, his heart slowed and he felt his panic subsiding. Cross stared around his room at Beacon High. The warm sunlight was just beginning to graze his room; he leaned over to the bedside table and grabbed a hold of his scroll, tapping it open he checked the time, 08:44 AM. A few measly hours of sleep, but now it was too late to try and grab some more, and the images from his nightmare were still fresh in his mind. Deciding now was as good a time as any; Cross headed for a shower, and began to prepare for the assembly and his introduction to the students of Beacon.

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**A/N Sorry for the short chapter, I just wanted to add a little back story for Alex.**

**I am part way through Chapter 4 which is looking to be the biggest chapter yet, I also switched things up and wrote it from Yang's perspective as she and the rest of team RWBY get to meet Alex.**

**Anyway, thank you to everyone who has read my story, the plot is coming together in my head and I may have an idea for a fight scene between our hero and someone from the RWBY universe.**

**I'll get chapter 4 up as soon as, but for now have a good life. Ciao :)**


	4. First Impressions

**Chapter 4: First Impressions**

Yang's consciousness came to her slow and groggy, her eyes refusing to open as the light streaming into the room burned her eyes. Stretching in her bed she let out a long and drawn out yawn.

"About time you woke up" came an agitated voice, "The assembly is in half an hour" The voice belonged to Weiss Schnee, one of four girls that formed Team RWBY.

"Huh, wha?" Yang rose from her bed, she rubbed the sleep from her eyes and stared around her room. It may have been her second term at Beacon but their shared dorm room wasn't much different. The large main room consisted of three chests of drawers, one large cupboard, one large window adorning the north wall, a small bookcase, two sets of bunk beds and a leather chair. The walls were covered with an amalgam of posters and paintings. There were three doors leading away from the main room, the main door opposite the window, with the other doors on the west and east wall leading to the kitchen and bathroom respectively.

Yang's teammates were already dressed in their school uniforms and were now waiting on Yang to get ready.

"Why didn't you just wake me up?" Yang asked.

"Please, an Ursa could come smashing in here and you still wouldn't wake up" The snarky remark came from Blake Belladonna, she stood leaning against the wall by the main door. Blake was tall and slender and had a pale complexion like Weiss and Ruby with wavy black hair that fell down passed her shoulders. She had dark amber eyes that were accentuated by her purple eye shadow. On top of her head sat a little black bow that covered up her Faunus heritage, a pair of small violet cat ears.

"Not to mention" Weiss interjected. "The last time I tried to wake you, you punched me in the nose" her anger was evident amongst her usual icy tone. Weiss was sat in an upright position on her bottom bunk, her long white hair styled in an offset ponytail, the base of which she adorned a tiara that resembled Icicles. She stared at Yang coldly with her piercing Ice blue eyes, her left eye bearing a crooked scar down it. Weiss also maintained a slim figure, though she was not as tall as herself or Blake and her skin was as close to white as you could get.

"Ha-ha" Yang laughed awkwardly as she started stroking her own long golden hair," I'd say I'm sorry, but I'm really not", she shot Weiss a sarcastic smile; Weiss just maintained her steady stare.

"That's what you get for poking the bear" Blake joked. Now it was Yang's turn to stare down Blake, who ignored her and went to reading her book, a smile etched across her face.

"Hey!" Yang, jumped down from her top bunk, "Where's Ruby?" she never got and answer, just Blake pointing into the kitchen, her focus still on her book.

"Whatsh shup?" Ruby was holding a small bag of cookies, half of the contents of which were stuffed into her mouth.

"Ruby you dolt! What have I told you about talking with your mouth full!" reprimanded Weiss. Ruby took one large gulp.

"Sorry Weiss" Ruby looked innocently at the floor. Yang stared at her baby sister, a small look of pride on her face. Ruby was the shortest of the group and also the youngest. She was moved ahead two years when she impressed the headmaster of Beacon with her prowess in combat. Ruby stood staring at her feet, her short black and red tipped hair covering her face; she looked back up at Weiss with her bright silver eyes. "It won't happen again, promise"

"Urgh, you say that every time, then you get your hands on a bag of cookies and before you know it you're spitting crumbs everywhere" came another rebuke from Weiss who was now standing waving her hand menacingly in Ruby's face, "And you!" she was now pointing at Yang, "Get ready! We now only have twenty minutes before assembly" Weiss barked.

"I'm on it" Yang snapped to attention and gave Weiss a salute "Give me a sec" she said before dashing into the bathroom and shutting the door behind her. Blake set her book down and Weiss and Ruby moved to the front door in preparation to set off.

Yang stared at herself him the bathroom mirror that was situated above their sink. She stared heavily at her features, most notable was her long golden hair that became a lighter shade as it got closer to the tips, and her hair was messy and loose, Yang however preferred not to brush as she was afraid of pulling off strands of her hair. She stared into her own bright lilac eyes and pinched her cheeks trying to add some colour to her pale complexion.

'_Maybe some make-up, and a quick fiddle with the hair and I should be good' _Yang nodded to herself.

"I'll be quick!" Yang yelled to her team-mates, "Just sorting my hair!" she heard an audible groan come from the other room.

The rest of Team RWBY knew that Yang was never quick when it came to her hair. It was a popular topic when it came to being in a hurry, no matter how long Yang spent 'sorting her hair' it would never look any different than when she started. Blake proceeded to read her book while Weiss sat back down on the bed and Ruby went back to the bag of cookies.

* * *

"Blast it Yang" Weiss snarled as they entered the large auditorium which acted as their assembly area as well as the arena for tournament style duels. They were now running fifteen minutes late thanks to Yang's preparations.

"Relax Weiss, we only missed Ozpin welcoming the first year students" Blake pointed out.

Ozpin was stood on a large elevated stage in front of the large gathering of students, a cane in his left hand with his coffee mug in his right. The walls were decorated with grey tones with thin green lines running down them to help accentuate the greys, the stage itself stood a meter off the ground with a sloped edge that had the same thin green lines running down its face. He was in the middle of addressing the new students while giving them a brief idea of what to expect at their first year at Beacon. Weiss breathed a sigh of relief.

"Why do you care if we're late anyway?" Yang asked. The four girls were now huddled together in the middle of the large crowd, a clear view of the stage and Ozpin.

Weiss spun on her heels and faced her "You got the message from Ozpin and you heard the other professors. There's a special announcement today and I'd rather not miss it because you were too busy fumbling with your mane!" Weiss snorted as she turned back to the stage. Yang was about to return fire when Weiss waved her hand dismissively.

"Shh, sh, sh, sh, be quiet he's starting!" Yang glared at the back of the white haired girls head, but remained quiet and looked up at Ozpin.

"As you all know, I have a special announcement for you all today" Ozpin began, pushing his spectacles further up the bridge of his nose. "As many of you are aware, the Vale tournament will be held in just a few months' time" Some students began cheering at this statement. "It is a great opportunity for you and your team to compete against other students from our neighboring kingdoms. However, we will have a special guest joining us from the academy Foresight" This announcement was met with a lot of discussion and mumbling from the students.

"Foresight?" Weiss had a look of awe and fear across her face.

"What is it Weiss?" asked Yang, but Weiss ignored her.

"I'm sure many of you have heard of Foresight's' reputation" Ozpin continued. "For those of you who don't, Foresight is an invite only academy. It is also notorious for producing some of the most powerful hunters in Remnant." they're were some excited bickering between the students. "However this is only possibly through the brutal way they train their students and the high fatality rate they have during their training. I visited Foresight a few weeks before this school year started and I was informed that the fatality rate of last year's initiates into their academy was 92% out of two hundred and twenty three applicants." Ozpin finished. An audible gasp was heard from the students quickly followed by heated discussion.

"92%!" Ruby shrieked. "That's…that's…" Ruby repeated trying to work out the math in her head.

"Two hundred and five died during training" Blake answered, Yang noticed a slight look of nausea on Blake's face, it was slight but it was there. "That means that only eighteen of them survived initiation" This entire time Weiss was silent, merely staring up at the headmaster.

A figure joined Ozpin on the stage, they all stared at the young man, who was covered in a dark green combat outfit, and his silver piercing eyes surveyed the students in front of him.

"Who's that?" Yang asked.

"I would like you to meet Alexander Cross" Ozpin spoke holding his hand out to the new arrival.

"Oh" Yang chimed, her question being answered. Ozpin continued his announcement.

"Mr Cross here is a Team Leader and one of the longest running members of the academy." He turned to look at Alex who was still surveying the students. He ran his eyes over their faces, Yang watched him with a look of awe. Who the hell was this guy and why did she feel off by being in his presence.

"Something's not right with him" Blake spoke with a hushed voice, barely above a whisper, however Yang was close enough to hear her.

"What is it?" she asked. Blake just shook her head.

"I don't know, I sense…something about his Aura. It's not right" she looked at Yang, who stared back before returning her gaze to Alex.

Her heart froze in her chest; his piercing silver eyes were staring at her.

* * *

Cross surveyed the students in front of him, some were fresh faced, innocent to the horrors that this world held, whilst others were more hardened mostly likely having proved themselves in combat, amongst other students or amongst the creatures of Grimm.

'_Well they look disappointing, I can see coming here was a waste of time' _a voice called from deep within Cross. He sighed inwardly.

"I thought you promised to be quiet while we were in Vale, in return you can have control over any combat we run into_?" _Cross thought to himself, speaking to the other voice in his head.

"_Yeah but there's clearly going to be no combat here, not any that you would need me for, anyway besides look at these hotties! How can I stay quiet about these beauties?"_

Cross sighed, ignoring the other voices remarks. He tried to keep up appearances by continuing to survey the students. However Cross found his gaze drawn to a tall strong looking blonde who was talking to a raven haired girl, at that moment she turned and faced him, her beautiful lilac eyes staring into his.

'_Oh yeah, now that's what I'm talking about. Look at those fun bags; you have a good eye my friend a VERY good eye'_

Cross winced at the voices remarks but couldn't help but notice how beautiful this girl was, and though he hated to agree with the voice, she was extremely endowed.

* * *

Yang noticed Alex wince. Why did he wince? Was he put off by her? Maybe he just got nervous? Maybe he thought…she was weak looking? Yang felt a flare of anger in the pit of her stomach.

"I don't care who this idiot is" Yang said to herself, "I'll show him who's weak!" Yang cracked her knuckles together.

"You are now dismissed" Ozpin spoke; the students immediately burst into conversation and began filing out of the room.

"Huh? Wha?" Yang looked around bewildered. Did she just miss the rest of Ozpins announcement? "What did he say?" she looked at the rest of her team. Weiss had finally snapped out of her daze and they were preparing to leave.

"He said that Alex guy would be over seeing the tournament and will be helping and answering questions if we needed it." Ruby answered her, following Blake and Weiss out of the hall. Yang caught up to Blake and leaned in close to her;

"Get anything else about his Aura? She asked. Blake looked lost in her thoughts. "Blake?" Yang gently shook her shoulder.

"Huh, what is it Yang" the look of confusion still spread across her face.

"I asked if you got anything else from that guy's Aura."

"I'm not sure, I think so" was her response.

"What do you mean think so?" Yang was getting a little impatient.

"When he was staring at you, I thought I sensed something but…" Blake trailed off. Yang grabbed Blake firmly by the shoulders and held her firm.

"What are you getting at?" Yang was about to lose her calm soon if Blake didn't start making sense.

Blake stared up at her.

"I think he has two Auras'"

* * *

**A/N ****This is the last "building block" chapter, from here on out I can get down to the nitty gritty, plot progression, fights, maybe some romance?**

**Well hopefully we'll find out soon, until then have a nice life. Ciao :)**


	5. Arras

**Chapter 5: Arras**

Cross walked through the halls of Beacon; it was quite a different sight than the one he was greeted with last night. The gorgeous midday sun reflected against the white stone buildings adding a beautiful shine to everything, it made the school feel warm and inviting, so comforting you couldn't help but smile and marvel at its beauty.

The bustling and atmosphere the students added was also something to behold, so much life and happiness, Cross could feel their auras practically irradiating with joy. However Cross did get some strange looks as he walked the halls, and some students did their best to keep out of his way. He didn't mind however, while Ozpin had instructed him to mingle with the students and share his vast wealth of knowledge with them, he was quite happy if they all just left him to his own devices. That was until Cross turned the corner and saw something that made his anger boil to its limit.

Acceptance was something that was prevalent in the kingdom of Cavros, Cross' home and where Foresight was situated. No matter if you were human or Faunus, straight or homosexual you were always accepted for who you are. In Cavros life was hard and people knew that life is a short and beautiful thing, and to waste such time hating others for the way they look, or who they choose to spend their life with seemed so pathetic. So you can imagine Cross' surprise when Ozpin had told him three years ago that in other kingdoms, the Faunus were supressed or bullied and that there were even wars waged between the two groups. Cross told himself that day that if he ever visited these kingdoms, no matter what, he would stand up for those who were pushed down and spat on, and Cross was about to get one such moment.

As Cross turned the corner he was greeted by a fairly empty corridor, both walls were lined with lockers, windows above the lockers allowed the midday sun to stream giving the hallway the same inviting look. A few students mingled about but they mostly stayed away from the commotion in the middle of the hallway. About a hundred meters away Cross could see four large guys stood around one small girl pinning her against the lockers. Cross advanced for a better view, the small girl was a Faunus, evident by her very large bunny ears that she had sprouting from the top of her head. One of the four men had her ear pinned against the locker with his fist.

'_Faunus ears are extremely sensitive, that must hurt like a bitch' _the other voiced chimed in. Tears were filling the girl's eyes as she squirmed and cried with pain, whilst the men around her just laughed.

"P-please, l-let me g-go" she pleaded; tears were beginning to stream down her face.

"Ha-ha what do you know, Cardin was right, they are real!" laughed the nameless student, his friends all joining in on this mockery of human behavior. Two of them were stood either side of the girl, leaning against the lockers, while the third and the attacker himself were stood in front of her boxing her in.

Cross was now stood behind him and his friend, he was staring at the girl, her eyes darting between her four assailants, begging, pleading for the pain to stop, to be let go.

The fire in Cross was beginning to rise; he stared at the back of the two men in front of him.

'_You know Ozpin won't be happy to hear we attacked some of his students' _the other voice pointed out.

"You would rather I walk on by and ignore this girls plea for help?" Cross thought angrily to himself, speaking to the other voice.

'_No' _it replied, '_I want you to break their fucking legs'_

Cross smiled at the voices statement, at that moment the girl saw him standing there, her eyes red from crying, she looked at him.

"Please" the girl whimpered, "help me"

"Ha-ha" laughed the nameless student as he applied more pressure to the girl's ear, she whined in pain. "No one is coming to help you" he sniggered.

"Think again" Cross retorted.

The four assailants barely had time to react; Cross grabbed the back of the attackers uniform and threw him across the hallway, smashing him into the lockers. Wasting no time in his surprise assault, Cross drove his fist into the stomach of the man to his left, he grimaced with pain as the air was forced from his body, and he staggered back a few steps before doubling over. Cross then stepped towards the man on the girls right and drove his foot upwards into his balls, the man cried in pain as he bent over clutching his crotch, grabbing the scruff of his neck Cross threw him into the fourth assailant and both were sent flying in a heap of tangled limbs.

The nameless student, now back on his feet, delivered a straight kick towards Cross' back. The girl seeing the attack only managed to squeal and point at the assailant. Cross, seeing this stepped quickly to his right as his kicked sailed passed him and into a locker, denting the metal door. Cross grabbed hold of his ankle and held his leg in the air, he was now hopping on one foot, and his arms flailed wildly as he tried to keep his balance.

"Let go of me you freak!" he screamed. Cross ignored him; instead he raised his left arm into the air and with all the strength he could muster dropped his elbow onto his knee. There was a blood curdling sound as his knee shattered beneath the blow, his leg bent in an almost nauseating way. The bully's scream of pain deafened the halls and the colour quickly drained from his face, not caring about the man's pain Cross once again threw him across the hall and into the lockers. He slumped to the floor screaming and clutching his mangled leg, his team mates gathering their wits quickly rushed to his side.

"Why did you do that?" One of them shouted at Cross.

"You monster!" another screamed.

"Monster!?" Cross shouted back, "The only monsters I see here are four scumbags picking on a lone girl!" Cross' Aura was peaking and visible green flames began to flow from his body in hot waves. "Now! Why don't you get out of my face before I decide to do some real damage?"

Not needing telling twice the men gathered up their injured friend, who had now passed out from the pain, and rushed him off to the infirmary. Cross watched them leave and could feel his anger subsiding, the green flames disappearing; he took one very deep breath and felt his body relax.

'_Bravo, absolutely splendid. I don't think I could have done that better myself, well except for the fact that I would have killed them and worn their skins as coats but apart from that you nailed it right on the head' _

Cross turned to the Faunus girl who was now huddled up into a ball on the floor, she was whimpering quietly and tears could still be seen on her face.

"Hey" Cross spoke in a soft tone, "Are you OK?" He gently placed his hand on her shoulder. The girl almost screamed and scurried a few feet away from Cross.

'_Oh please, this girl is a lost cause, can we go find more hooligans to rough up?'_

Cross refused to leave the girl; instead he sat on the floor next to her. A few students had begun walking through the halls and were stopping to watch the scene before them. Cross moved up close to the girl and rested his head against the lockers; she was next to him, her knees pulled up to her chest, her long brown hair shielding her face. She had a small and fragile frame, Cross thought that even though she didn't seem like much of a warrior, there must have been something about her that got her into Beacon

"I'm not going to hurt you, I just want to make sure you're OK" he began, "My name is Alex"

"I know" the girl whimpered, "I saw you at the assembly, you're from that terrible school" she looked up from her knees, her hair parting, revealing her soft delicate features. Cross smiled at her, and he saw that her tears had stopped.

"I am" Cross replied, "It's nowhere near as nice as this place" Cross spoke as he looked around the halls.

"Why did you help me?" the young girl asked. Cross turned back to her.

"You needed help and I wanted to help" Cross shrugged.

"Even though I'm a Faunu-"

"I don't care that you're Faunus" Cross interrupted, still keeping his tone soft. "Those jerks were bullying you, I wasn't going to stand by and let that happen"

"You hurt one of them." her tone was soft almost a whisper and Cross had to strain to hear what she was saying, but he noticed a small smile across her face.

"Ha-ha, I did, I don't think he'll be walking around any time soon." Cross smiled to the girl.

"Good" she nodded her head; "My name is Velvet, Velvet Scarlatina" she smiled back.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Velvet, maybe now is a good time to get off the floor" Cross suggested, Velvet nodded her agreement, he stood up and helped her too her feet, he noticed her wince in pain as she stood.

"I thought you said you were OK" he asked accusingly. Velvet looked a little timid.

"I am, it's just, and um well it's just my stupid ears" she spoke a little harshly at her ears.

"Hey!" Cross snapped causing the girl to jump, "You're ears are a part of you, you should never be ashamed of them, they make you who you are and that is something you should be proud of. Here." Cross gently took Velvet's left ear, the one that got pinned against the locker. She winced at the pain but didn't resist, Cross placed his hand on either side of her ear, where a bruise was beginning to show. He focused his Aura and pushed it towards his hands, letting the energy flow between his palms. Brilliant green flames began to dance around her ear, not burning but healing. Velvet looked up and watched as the emerald flames licked at her ear, she breathed a sigh of relief as his Aura numbed the pain and began to heal the damaged tissue. Cross removed his hands.

"There you go, how does that feel?" he asked.

"Much better" she smiled at him, all traces of the anguish and pain she felt moments before had now gone.

"Velvet!" a voice shouted from down the hallway.

"Oh right, I was meant to be heading to class" Velvet began running towards the voice, she stopped and ran back to Cross. "Thank you, for everything" she rose onto her tiptoes and kissed Cross on the cheek. Heat rose to the young mans face, he imagined his face looked as red as Velvet's did, her pale cheeks tinted crimson.

"A-always" he stammered out with a smile. Velvet turned and ran back towards the voice. Cross rubbed his cheek where she planted the kiss. Today was turning out to be a pretty good day.

'_Aww isn't that sweet, a virgins first kiss." _mocked his other half.

_"_Shut your mouth!" he spat back, all traces of his embarrassment gone in a flash.

_"Still, there better be girls who put out a lot more than that, otherwise I am going to be pi-issed'_

Yang watched from around the corner, she saw the whole thing. His advance on the bully's, his eventual fight, she couldn't help but smile when he broke one of their legs, '_You deserved that' _she thought to herself.

What surprised her the most though was his attitude towards Velvet, he was kind and caring, after hearing about his school she expected, well she wasn't exactly sure of what she expected but it wasn't this. Maybe more of a monster than a man, caring only for the hunt and driven by bloodlust, but he was so gentle with Velvet that she couldn't help but smile at him. He was so sweet and sincere and what he said about Velvet being Faunus, '_Well that's him in Blake's good books' _she watched as Velvet kissed him on the cheek goodbye. Yang was a little surprised by that, Velvet was always so shy and reserved, to see her get the courage to kiss someone.

"Looks like someone made a good first impression" Yang spoke as she approached Alex. He turned and a momentary look of surprise flitted across his face. "I also saw what you did to those bully's" Cross merely stared at her, his arms folded across his chest. "I have to say I'm a little disappointed."

"Oh?" he asked. She couldn't help but stare into his deep silver eyes.

"A little disappointed that I didn't get to break his legs myself" a smile slowly appearing on her face.

"Well I didn't kill him, so you may still get a chance" Alex joked. "Besides you could have come out and helped me rather than watch from a distance." Yang waved her hand dismissively.

"You looked like you had things under control"

"Yeah, you're right, you probably would have just cramped my style anyway" Cross smiled. Yang placed a hand on her heart and feigned injury.

"Argh, you wound me with such words" she jested.

"Uh-huh, so? Is there a reason you're here?" he asked.

Yang suddenly remembered why she went looking for Alex in the first place, she was still pissed at the way he looked at her in the assembly and was planning on giving him a piece of her mind, but now after what she's seen she no longer felt anger towards the man.

'_Quick, think of an excuse' _she thought to herself. Yang remembered what Blake had said about him having two Aura's.

'_If I could get close to him for a while, I could find out for sure' _she remembered Blake telling her. Suddenly Yang had an epiphany.

"Right, yes, Ozpin said that you would answer any questions we had" she stammered out. Cross looked at her questioningly.

"So? What is your question?"

"Erm, no, it's not just me, my whole team has questions for you" Yang gave an awkward smile. Cross looked around the hallway, still barren from the lack of students.

"I'm not seeing them"

"Right, that's because they are waiting at our dorm room and I was sent to invite you over" Yang was nervously stroking her long gold hair.

Cross looked at her for a moment; Yang couldn't help but stare at his eyes. Someone once told Yang that a person's eyes were a small window into their soul and she was starting to agree. His eyes were similar to Ruby's in that they both shared the same deep silver eye colour but there was more to his eyes than that. It was as if his experiences affected his eyes, like he'd seen things most people wouldn't believe, been places that most could never imagine and done things most would never forgive.

"Alright, lead the way" Cross' answer jolted Yang from her daydream.

"Really?" Yang looked surprised at Alex's agreement to go with her. "Right, then follow me"

* * *

A few moments later both he and Yang were stood outside of team RWBY's dorm room. Yang swiped her card on the card scanner and the metal door slid open granting them access, Yang led the way followed closely by Cross.

'_Oh. My. God' _

Cross was greeted by a dorm room slightly larger than his, in front of him on either side were a set of bunk beds, three of which had a girl sitting or lying on, all of them immediately stopped what they were doing and stared at Cross.

'_A whole room of these beauties, if we play our cards right we may live out one of our greatest fantasies'_

"One of YOUR greatest fantasies" Cross thought, correcting the voice.

'_You and me are the same person, now shut up and get these girls on their knees!" _The voice snapped, Cross ignored him.

"Guys" Yang announced, "You all remember Alexander from the assembly, he's agreed to answer any questions we have" The other girls were now on their feet. "Alex, this is Weiss" she gestured to a white haired girl.

"It's a pleasure to meet you" Weiss spoke as she curtsied. The other girls just looked at her weirdly.

"Okaaaaay, that was weird" Yang remarked, Weiss shot her an Icy glare but Yang just moved on.

"Oh, and this is my baby sister Ruby" Yang exclaimed squeezing the poor girl in a tight hug and suffocating her with her breasts.

'_Oh yeah, I hope she hugs us like that'_

"Please shtahp!" the young girl pleaded, and Yang released her from her bear hug.

"Ruby is our fearless leader and she's only sixteen" Yang pointed out with a large helping of pride in her voice.

"Pleased to meet you" Ruby held her and out and Cross took it in a firm handshake.

"Likewise" said Cross, "You must be the girl that Ozpin was referring to." This was met with questioning looks from the girls. "He told me a girl of sixteen was starting her second year here. I thought to myself that this girl must be something special to be so young and get so far" he explained, "I hope to see it for myself if you perform in the tournament"

"Of course!" Ruby exclaimed. Well at least she was confident.

"Lastly but not least we have Blake" Yang gestured to a tall raven haired girl. Cross recognised her as the one Yang was speaking to in the assembly.

"It's nice to meet you Blake" Crossed extended his hand.

"Nice to meet you too" she took Cross' hand.

'_She's a Faunus'. _Cross' inner voice pointed out.

"What? How do you know?" he asked the voice.

'_Her bow, look at it twitch like mad, definitely Faunus ears under there. You know we've never been with a Faunus girl'_

"We've never been with any kind of girl" Cross pointed out.

'_That's because you're always in control, if I had the reigns, we'd have slept with a lot more girls.'_

"Yeah I don't think rape counts" Cross snorted inwardly.

'_Alex!' _The voice snapped, '_Don't be so vulgar. Now, let me take control and let's see what noises I can get these girls to make'_

"I'm guessing something along the lines of, 'Oh god, oh god, please stop raping me'" Cross let a small chuckle escape his lips. Recovering his composure he decided to point this out to the group and gauge their reaction.

"So" he spoke to Blake, "You're a Faunus" Cross remarked. A look of surprise was plastered on all of the girl's faces.

"H-how did you know?" Blake stammered, taking a step back. Cross pointed to the top of his own head.

"Your bow is twitching like crazy" everyone stared at the bow atop Blake's head, which was indeed, twitching rapidly. "Now if I recall, a Faunus' ears only twitch like that when their excited, nervous or angry. So which one is it?" he queried. Blake started to look nervous.

"Well I've heard a bit about where you came from, and about Foresight. You're kind of a big deal" Cross would have accepted this excuse and moved on, however as she spoke, Blake kept looking at Yang. Cross looked between the two girls.

"Alright, something is going on here and I don't like being kept in the dark. So, you either tell me what's going on or I'm heading out that door" Cross snapped. The two girls continued to exchange looks, while Weiss and Ruby looked at them both in confusion.

"Are you sure now Blake?" Yang asked, Blake nodded.

"Will someone please tell me what's going on" Weiss demanded. Blake stared at Cross.

"So" she began, "You have two Aura's" Weiss and Ruby stared at Cross in shock. Cross merely stared darkly at Blake.

"Impossible!" Weiss interjected, "An Aura is the outward manifestation of one's soul, to say he has two Aura's would be implying he has…" her voice trailed off, "…two souls?" she looked at him with horror.

The girls were all looking extremely nervous, Cross' face had grown considerably darker and they were afraid he was going to attack them. Yang instinctively put herself between Ruby and the ever angry looking Cross.

The voice inside Cross was laughing hysterically,

'_Ho-ly shit' _ the voice managed to say between hysterics, '_Out of all the people you meet, you had to find the one person that's Aura sensitive' _ the voice continued to laugh uncontrollably.

"At least someone here is having fun!" Cross sneered at the voice, his anger at the voice and his own disgust at his failure to keep his condition secret was becoming apparent on his face. He watched as Yang slowly moved over to Ruby.

'So', the voice was beginning to calm down, '_What do we do now? I personally say tell them, cat's outta the bag now, and hiding this may only make this worse_ '

"Oh yeah sure!" Cross snapped at the voice, "I'll tell them that I have two souls sharing one body and that each soul has its own Aura. Not only that, but each soul has two very different personalities AND to add a cherry on the cake, we can talk to each other with our thoughts." Cross spoke to the other voice, his thoughts contained a mix of sarcasm and anger. "Oh, oh and that's not the best part. If I let him take control of the body he tends to violently murder people!" Cross' thoughts were now screaming at the other half, who was now silent.

"Alex?" Yang asked, her voice containing concern. Cross sighed heavily and slumped into a leather chair just behind him.

"Yes, I have two souls" Cross deadpanned, choosing to tell the girls and hope they understood, rather than keeping quiet only for them to form their own wildly inaccurate conclusions. The girls just stared at him, looks of shock on their face. Seconds turned to minutes and the girls still stood looking at him with shock and confusion.

"Will you please sit down you're making me uncomfortable" The girls moved to seat themselves. Blake sitting on her bottom bunk next to Cross, Weiss and Ruby both sat down on the other bottom bunk across from him, he was sure he could see them holding hands, while Yang sat on the floor in front of him. Cross rubbed his eyes and sighed in frustration.

"Are you sure you're OK?" Yang asked

"Yeah, it's just I was hoping to keep this a secret for months, to have it ousted within twenty four hours?" Cross shook his head.

"I am sorry" Blake said.

"No" Cross quickly spoke, "You were presented with an unknown and you chose to address it head on, besides, better you speak to me about it rather than you telling everyone in the school"

"I would never do such a thing!" Blake snapped, "I know first-hand what it's like to keep a secret from friends, and I made the mistake of talking to others rather than address the issue head on." Blake cast a smile over her team-mates who each returned the smile. Cross nodded to himself.

"Thank you Blake, if you would be so kind and not tell anyone else about this, especially Ozpin"

"Why not Ozpin, does he not know about this?" Weiss asked.

"He does, just not all the details. He knows I have another side but I told him that I have control of him if he should ever surface. The truth is I don't, I can refuse to let him take over, but should I ever allow him control over the body I would have no way to influence his actions or take back control for myself. Only he could allow that if he chooses to do so." Cross had never told anyone this before, it felt strangely liberating.

"So if you let him take charge you may never get back your body?" Yang asked. Cross nodded his response. Yang let out a low whistle, "No wonder you don't want to let him out, to be trapped in your own body? That's rough!"

"Does he have a name?" the question came from Ruby, who was offering Cross a gentle smile.

Cross nodded, "His name is Arras"

"Do you…fight him for control?" came another question.

"No, it's purely symbiotic. I'm in control most of the time; Arras has control over intense combat or life and death situations. Though it wasn't always like this, for the longest time I would just black out whenever I got angry, only to wake up minutes or hours later, usually stood in the middle of carnage or a massacre, with witnesses claiming that it was me who was responsible despite the fact that I had no such memory of the events that transpired."

"So how did you finally solve the problem" Ruby asked. The girl was full of questions.

Cross told them of his time with the Rinetian warriors and how they helped him communicate with Arras, through discipline and self-control. They even taught Arras and him how to work together, and showed them that by working together, they were far more powerful than if they tried to go it alone.

"Eventually we worked out a routine" Cross continued, "Ever since then things have been getting better" He finished.

"I believe I read a book about someone like you" Blake looked thoughtful, "Yes, I believe it was the book I was reading when I was first met Yang" she smiled at Yang, who smiled back, "The book was about a man with two souls, each fighting for control over the body"

"What happened to him?" Cross asked.

Blake shook her head, "He was eventually driven mad, though he did sacrifice himself to save others"

Cross nodded slightly, "The warriors told me of others like me, people who couldn't handle it and were driven mad, others who were consumed by the other half and those whose mind simply stopped working. I guess that makes me one of the lucky ones" Cross chuckled to himself. "So? After hearing all this, what do you think?"

"Well" Ruby spoke, "You seem like a nice guy to me" she smiled.

"Right" Yang joined in, "And after the way you helped Velvet, you've got my seal of approval"

"Wait, what?" Weiss asked puzzled, "What happened with Velvet?"

"Oh, right" Yang told the girls of what she witnessed in the halls. After she finished they looked at Cross.

"You broke his leg?" Weiss exclaimed, "Well Nora is going to love you"

"I don't think many people would have done what you did" Blake said, "Thank you, I would gladly call you my friend."

Everyone now looked over at Weiss.

"You promise not to let this Arras character out?" she asked pointing her finger at Cross.

"Well I can't exactly promise that, but I will do my best"

"Hm, then I guess so" Weiss folded her arms.

"Yeah, that's about as close as a yes as you're going to get, I'd take it and leave it if I were you" Yang whispered to Cross, though still clearly audible for the others to hear her. Cross smiled at her.

Maybe this wasn't such a bad thing after all, here he was, in a room full of girls who knew about his dark secret, and yet despite this, they accepted him. No fear, or indignation, just acceptance. Cross tapped his scroll and saw that an hour had passed since he arrived.

"You lot wouldn't mind if I just nip out for some fresh air? Just need to clear my head a bit." Cross asked rising to his feet and stretching.

"No probs" replied Yang, "Besides we have classes soon anyway, we'll catch you later, right?"

"Of course" Cross replied turning to leave the room.

"Oh and Alex?" Cross turned back to Yang, "Your secret is safe with us" The girls all gave him a smile and a nod. Cross nodded his thanks and set out.

* * *

He walked out into the court yard and under the midday sun, soft puffy white clouds lazily moved across the baby blue sky, he took in a large breath and let the warm summer air fill his lungs, before breathing out, his body relaxing. He closed his eyes and looked up to the sky, feeling the warm rays of the sun of his face.

"A beautiful day isn't it" came a man's voice. Cross didn't react, keeping his face pointing towards the sun.

"I was wondering how long it would be before you came looking for me" Cross said lowering his face and turning to Ozpin, who was standing behind him, dressed in his usual attire with a mug in his right hand.

"I was wondering how you were finding Beacon?" Ozpin asked, taking a sip from his mug.

"It's a beautiful school. It's refreshing to know places like this exist. Spending so much time hunting Grimm in desolate wastelands you sort of forget about the beauty in this world"

Ozpin walked up next to him, "Made any friends?" he asked. Cross got the feeling that he already knew the answer but just wanted to hear it for himself. He doubted that anything happened in this school without him knowing.

Cross nodded, "I met the girls of team RWBY."

"A promising group of individuals, if I do say so myself." A hint of pride was in his voice, "Strong, smart,"

"And understanding" Cross interrupted. Ozpin looked at the young man, he chose not to ask what he meant by that. Ozpin nodded.

"Also a very peculiar thing happened earlier today" Ozpin began. He looked over at Cross who was staring across the campus, "It would seem that a pupil of mine, was taken to the infirmary with a broken leg" Ozpin stared at Cross hoping to see a reaction on his face, however Cross' stare remained the same. "When we asked his friends what happened they claimed that it was you who attacked them. Care to shed light on the matter?"

Cross looked at him, "Did they happen to say what they were doing when I supposedly attacked them?" he asked.

"They said they were talking to Miss Scarlatina"

"Who?" Cross asked, feigning ignorance. Ozpin merely smiled and sipped his mug.

"A young Faunus girl"

"And what did she have to say about all this?"

"It would appear that she has never seen you since the assembly, also some witnesses to this 'attack' say that you were never there. A strange thing wouldn't you agree?"

Cross merely stared off into the distance, "Sounds like you have quite the predicament there" he pointed out, "Sounds like these friends of his are lying"

"So it would seem," Ozpin agreed, "But then there's still the matter of the broken leg"

Cross shrugged, "Maybe he fell down the stairs?" Ozpin stared at him, taking another sip from his mug.

"Well then" Ozpin began; "It would seem that I must inform these stairs that it should refrain from injuring anymore of my students, even if they were bullying Miss Scarlatina" he smiled and walked back towards the school.

He really did know everything that happened at this school. Cross stared over the grounds, students were mingling, laughing, joking, or sat at the tables scattered about the grounds, scribbling in books and journals. Cross saw large airships in the distance, ferrying student to and from the city of Vale

Today was an interesting day, who knows what the coming weeks might have in store for him.

* * *

**Thank you all for the support and the reviews. Feel free to let me know how I did with this chapter, or not, it's your choice :)**


	6. The Hunt

**A/N I can't believe it's been a month since my last chapter. Stupid real life getting in the way.**

**Anyway, here's a new chapter, so I hope you enjoy it.**

**Chapter 6: The Hunt**

When he awoke he was greeted with nothing but darkness. It was still early in the morning; dawn was still a few hours away and now was the perfect time for him to ease off some of the stress he had been feeling over his first week at Beacon.

He tossed his covers off himself and quickly sat up. He scanned around the dark room; his eyes would never adjust as there was no light. The drapes were drawn tightly closed to ensure that the moon light or the morning sun wouldn't be able to penetrate the shroud that he covered his room with. Alex preferred it that way.

He however didn't need any light to know exactly where to go, standing straight he took a few brisk paces forward. He kicked his foot outward and felt it hit the soft leather of a chair, bending down he grabbed hold of his outfit which was thrown over the back of it. Within moments he was fully dressed in his combat gear, swords and quivers secured to his back. He stretched for a moment to fully accustom him to the tight fitting gear.

With that, Arras set off.

He stepped out into Beacons main courtyard, void off life, everyone would be sleeping and he knew no-one would disturb him. He decided to take a few moments to enjoy his freedom. He very rarely got the chance to have control over the body, and the few chances he had were always in the heat of combat or moments before Alex was about to be seriously injured or killed. He never got the chance to just enjoy the freedom.

He stared up at the shattered moon, the cloudless sky allowed the moon to bathe everything in its wake in beautiful twilight. Everything had a sort of dark blue and grey tint to it. He pulled a large breath into his lungs and held it for a few moments before releasing his warm breath into the cold night. Arras always loved staring at the moon; it always made him feel calm and gave him the greatest sense of clarity. He was delighted when a little over a year ago Alex himself began taking time to observe the broken white orb.

Arras smiled softly to himself. That was the first time he noted the 'bleeding effect'. Arras was quick to notice that extreme emotions or desires from one soul would sometimes bleed over into the other half, without the other one knowing that what they were feeling or the desire they suddenly had wasn't even their own. The bleeding effect had happened numerous times, mainly from Arras to Alex since Alex was almost always in control. Most recently was when Alex broke that bully's leg. During the brief fight Arras wished that he would break that little shits leg and was rather pleased when Alex granted him his wish, he knew deep down such a brazen attack wasn't in Alex's nature, however Alex did have a temper and Arras assumed that Alex may have just thought his anger got the better of him rather than fulfilling one of Arras' desires.

It was a complicated and sometimes confusing trait that they shared, but then again, complicated and confusing traits were the story of their lives.

Feeling he had dawdled long enough Arras quickly set off towards the far north side of Beacon.

After a few minutes, and passing through a small patch of trees and dense brush, he arrived at a cliff with a sheer drop into the darkness below. Arras stepped up to the edge and stared down the hundred foot drop. Darkness was all he could see, however the darkness swayed gently in the wind and he knew he was looking at the foliage of the Emerald forest, the location of where he would begin his hunt. He took a few steps back and began walking along the edge of the cliff, the moons gentle twilight gleamed off of a series of small metal panels set into the floor, and Arras inspected them for a moment. He gently placed his foot on a panel and began to feel energy build up from within it, he chose to remove his foot but as he did the panel sprung up from the ground with a large thudding noise that echoed long and far into the still night.

Arras took a step back and swore under his breath, hoping no one heard that. He watched as the metal plate set itself back into the ground. It was some form of catapult, most likely used to launch students into the forest for trails or missions. Arras walked over to the edge of the cliff, judging by the noise the contraption made, using it was out of the question, instead jumping from the cliff and down into the forest was his best bet. Wasting no time he took a few paces back and sprinted towards the edge, leaping at the last moment, Arras plummeted fast towards the dark foliage below. The wind whipped violently passed his ears deafening him and he felt a slight feeling off nausea in the pit of his stomach as it turned at this unnatural feeling.

Arras pulled his legs up to his chest and quickly made a few signs with his left hand, waving it under his feet a soft blue glyph appeared and began to rapidly slow his decent. He passed through the leaves and branches of the trees that whipped at his body before the glyph halted him mere centimetres from the ground, the glyph vanished and Arras landed on the floor with the softest of thuds. He was crouched low to the ground and began quickly scanning his surroundings. Below the cover of the trees, the moon light was unable to penetrate through except for a few slivers of twilight here and there. Arras waited patiently for a few moments; his senses were becoming sharper by the second as he focused them on his environment. His eyes began to adjust to the darkness and he was able to make out the trunks of numerous trees, he began to notice the uneven ground, dozens of twigs and dry leaves littered the floor, movement would have to be slow and cautious if he was to move through undetected. The slightest noise would sound like a gunshot in the emptiness of the night. His ears picked up the slight sway and creaking of the trees as they danced softly in the wind but apart from that no other noise could be heard, if something was out there, it was staying just as quiet as Arras.

His eyes immediately darted to his right, he was sure he just spotted something dark moving quickly far beyond the trees, his eyes rapidly scanned the area hoping to catch a glimpse of it, his ears straining to hear the slightest noise that might give him an idea of where the creature was. Moments passed and still no luck, no movement, no sound; Arras breathed softly, false alarm. He stood slowly and began to move gingerly through the forest, he kept his focus between where his next step was and his surroundings. Arras was in dangerous territory now, relaxing or getting sloppy could very well be the end of him. His pace began to quicken through the forest as his eyes further adapted to the murky darkness, he was now able to make out gaps of dried dirt that were free of twigs or leaves.

After a few minutes Arras arrived at a large clearing in the forest, here the moon was unabated and it poured its soft grey light over the area. Blades of grass blew softly in the wind; the area was tranquil, almost serene in its beauty. A beautiful place, if not for all the monsters that would happily tear him limb from limb. Arras stepped out into the middle of the clearing, on all sides he was surround by the trees and the darkness they provided against the moons light.

"Here's a good a spot as any" he whispered softly to himself.

Standing in the center of the clearing he unsheathed his two blades; he stared down at his weapons. Both blades were identical, each just under a metre in length. The main thing you noticed were the handles, whilst most common blades were roughly one quarter handle, three quarters blades, his weapons were half and half in ratio. The handles were made of a fine bronze steel composite, wrapped tightly in dark green leather straps to add traction to his grip. The blades were slightly curved and were made out of a transparent metal alloy. The blades were incredibly light and well balanced; the man who forged them for Alex was an old friend of the family and assured him that no amount of use would ever dull the blades. Naturally Alex thought this was nonsense, however five years later and true to his word, they have never needed to be sharpened.

The man who forged them told him that his blades were a variant of an ancient weapon known as a Duan Da Dao and at Alex's request a few alterations were made, one of which was that the blades could be combined at the handles to form a large, two bladed staff.

Arras pushed the base of the handles together and gave them a slight twist, there was an audible click and Arras held the staff at his side, it roughly stood at the same height as him. The curves in the blades gave the staff the appearance of a long bow, as was the point, with the use of his aura he was able to create small glyph's that would launch his arrows, and the staff was used as a bow to allow him to aim. He marveled at his weapon, it had taken Alex the better part of three years to fully master the three combination weapon, and even then Arras was sure there was still much more for them to learn.

Arras held the staff out in front of him horizontally, perfectly balanced, he smiled at himself. He began by performing some practice manoeuvres, stepping forward he spun the staff either side of him, then he crouched low and swung the weapon over his head, switching his hands continuously to allow him to keep the staff in motion. He stepped back and spun the staff in front of him, over his head and ended with the weapon held behind his back. Spinning on the spot he brought the deadly weapon swinging in a wide arc around his side, he flawlessly detached the staff into two, one handed weapons. A few more series of swings, stabs, rolls and flips and Arras finished the flourish by plunging both blades into the soft ground.

He let go of the weapons and paced in a small circle around them, allowing the cold night air to fill his lungs after his brief warm up, satisfied he was ready, and he began to set up his lure.

Okay, so maybe lure isn't the right word.

"Hellooooo, I'm just a lonely human lost in this deep dark forest" he yelled at the top of his lungs, "I sure hope there are no big bad monsters that might come and eat my delicious flesh!"

Satisfied that the entire forest heard his taunt, he went and retrieved his weapons.

His senses sharp, he drew a few more deep breaths, adrenaline surged through his body. He was beginning to feel nervous, not out of fear, but out of anticipation. Arras knew the overwhelming feeling of calm he always achieved during a life and death fight was almost here. He longed for that moment; it was the only time when Arras felt truly alive.

The sounds of heavy footfalls brought his attention to his right, then to his left. A dozen burning ember eyes surrounded him, sounds of growls and snarling filled the still night. The creatures waited in the darkness of the trees, only the eyes were visible and their hot breaths against the cool air, but judging by their numbers he already knew what he was facing, only one creature of Grimm dwelled in forests in such numbers, Beowolves.

Beowolves were large creatures covered in pitch black fur. They reminded Arras of the tales of werewolves he had heard on his travels, they stand on their hind legs, albeit with a slouch, with long muscular arms and legs. They also adorn the same white bone-like mask and red detailing that the Ursa wear. However, Beowolves are generally weak opponents to any skilled hunter/huntress, and so they overwhelm their target with sheer numbers. This was going to be a good fight.

Arras stood poised, his blades firmly held in his hands, if his experience held any weight the Alpha of the pack would attack first. Almost to punctuate his thought, three Beowolves emerged from the forest. Two of them were slightly larger than the average man, however it was the one in the middle that drew his attention, the creature was twice the size of the other two and its arms and legs were covered with white protruding spikes. It stared menacingly at Arras as it let out a deafening howl, the other creatures began to join in or snarl at Arras.

Arras however didn't flinch, he kept constant eye contact with the Alpha, and then it struck.

The creature dashed towards Arras at blinding speed, its large black paw adorned with sharp white claws swung at such an easy target. Arras waited for the last possible moment, when there was no way for the creature to halt its attack. He stepped back just a little and the swing missed by a hairs length, however the creature's momentum carried it forward still and was unable to dodge as Arras raised his right arm and plunged his blade clean through its neck. The menacing howl was caught in its throat as it slumped to the ground in front of Arras. Removing the blade, he brought it back down and it cut clean through the neck, the creature's head rolled off to the side. Arras stared as black ooze began to pour from the open wound, staining the grass and his boots. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply. The stench burned his nostrils but he didn't care, he was experiencing euphoria, his first kill in a week. Arras smiled to himself and opened his eyes, there was still many more creatures to kill before the night was over.

The rest of the pack began to howl and snarl violently, they would not allow Arras to leave this forest alive. They began pouring out into the clearing, a barrage of teeth and claws came crashing down on him.

* * *

Blake watched silently from high in the trees, she had been tracking Alex carefully ever since he left the campus. Unable to sleep she had planned on heading over to the training room in the hopes of tiring her body out and forcing sleep upon herself. However her plans had changed once she spotted Alex stood in the court yard staring at the moon. She planned on speaking to him but he quickly took off, and she couldn't help but follow. She had thought she lost him through a small cluster of trees; however the sound of one of the launchers being activated allowed her to quickly locate him. She was surprised when she noticed his plan was to enter the Emerald forest, and quickly followed him over the edge of the cliff. She tried her best to land whilst making a minimum of noise; however she was sure she was spotted when Alex refused to move for a good few minutes; however he continued on into the forest, unaware that Blake followed him from high in the trees.

She now watched, perched on a branch high in the trees as he quickly dispatched the Alpha from a pack of Beowolves. He moved with such speed that Blake's eyes couldn't follow his attack, she was sure that he left his dodge too late and was about to intervene, however, the blink of an eye later, Alex had his blade through the creatures throat.

She now watched with a sense of awe as he felled creature after creature. They threw themselves at him, teeth and claws, all hoping to be the one to claim the kill. However Alex's blades moved with such speed that no attack could get through. One would lunge for a bite and its head would be flying through the air, another would swing with both claws only to find both arms severed and black blood flowing freely from the stumps. She tried her best to keep track of his arms and blades but it was impossible. One creature would attack from the right, and Alex would parry and deliver a killing blow, at the same time a creature would attack from the left yet somehow he would parry and vanquish it too. His arms would literally be in two places at once.

'_His semblance maybe? Maybe he has incredible speed like Ruby?' _she thought to herself, it was possible.

She watched as dozens of Beowolves turned to only a handful, his two blades became one long staff as he swung the deadly weapon around him and over his head, preventing any creature to get close without losing a limb or its life. The few remaining creatures refused to retreat, instead throwing themselves at the wall of blades Alex somehow maintained. His armour was stained black from blood and a horrid stench hung heavy in the air, the smell was especially putrid to Blake. She silently cursed her Faunus enhanced sense of smell.

Alex now had the last few creatures on the defensive, detaching his blades he lunged at one, rolling at the last second under the creatures attack, now positioned behind his kill, he drove his blade backwards into the Beowolves leg, the creatures howl was sickening. Removing the blade he cut the damaged limb clean off, the Grimm fell backwards to the ground and he drove his blade through its skull into the ground. One of the creatures attacked, hoping to catch Alex off guard, he flipped backwards, the attack missing its target. Now on his feet Alex countered, the creature swung again only for Alex to sidestep it, raising his weapon he removed the attacking limb, black blood sprayed from the wound like a geyser, with the same blade he drove it into the side of the creature's neck, driving his other blade into its skull. Blake noticed his fighting style, no flare or showboating, each attack was designed to end the fight as quickly as possible, removing limbs to prevent future attacks and to disorient his target, once successful he would go straight for the killing blow. This tactic made sense, for Alex had no team to plan attacks with or to back him up should he be bested. The longer the fight draws on for, the greater the chance of that happening.

Only two creatures remained, though both stood resolute, as if the fact that their foe had bested twenty of their allies made no difference. Alex paced side to side waiting for their strike. One of them bounded for Alex, its attack was reckless as it leapt with both claws, and he merely ducked under the attack, driving a blade into its spine. Not bothering to finish it off he quickly turned his sights to the second creature, it swung a heavy claw at Alex but he countered by plunging his blade into its palm, the creature howled and swung at him with its good arm, Alex quickly removed the limb with his other blade and then removed the stabbed limb as well. The creature stumbled back, staring at its new stumps, still snarling at its soon to be killer, Alex waited a few moments as if relishing in the tormented creatures pain, in the blink of an eye Alex raised both blades and severed its head from its torso. He nonchalantly walked over to the first creature, that was still howling and writhing in pain on the ground, its spinal injury preventing it from getting to its feet, Alex stood over it raising both blades high into the air before plunging them into the back of its neck. His breathing was heavy as he removed his weapon from the last creature, she silently watched as he surveyed the carnage before him. She couldn't quite see his face, which was also stained with blood, but he appeared to be smiling.

Was this his form of training? If so it seemed intense and needlessly risky. However Blake couldn't help but commend him on his performance. An entire pack of Beowolves dispatched and not a single one landed a hit. While not impossible it was still impressive. Deciding she had spied on him long enough, she silently dropped to the ground, and approached Alex from behind.

"I have to say I'm very impress-" her words caught in her throat as Alex turned to face her.

His features seemed somewhat distorted, the calm smile she saw moments before was gone now replaced with a grin. However it was his eyes that caused her to freeze.

They were blood red, not like Yang's when her temper flared and her lilac iris' would change to a deep red. No, his whole eye was red, pupil, iris, sclera, all a blood red. Add that to the grin and the blood stained face and he had the appearance of a demon. Her heart pounded in her chest.

"I'm sorry, were you expecting someone else?" His grin widened and he took a few steps towards her. Blake instinctively stepped back, her eyes never leaving his.

"Arras?" her words faltered as they left her mouth and her arm instinctively reached for her weapon.

"Bingo, bingo!" Arras spotted her hand reaching for her weapon behind her back. "Ah, ah, ah." He said waving his finger at Blake. "I wouldn't do that if I was you. Besides, do you really think you could draw your weapon before I slit your throat?" his wicked grin faded, replaced with a look of determination.

Blake hesitated for a moment, and almost jumped out of her skin when Arras began laughing hysterically.

"Alex really has gotten you all afraid of me. Well I can't expect anything different from him, he's always judged me harshly" his hysterics subsiding, instead resuming a calm demeanor.

"What are you talking about?" Blake asked, her hand lowering from her weapon.

"Oh c'mon, I may have committed a few morally questionable acts but I'm hardly the monster Alex makes me out to be." Blake remembered the stories Alex told of his counterpart. The acts he committed and the innocents he sacrificed just to reach his target. Blake's stomach twisted at the thought of someone who could commit such vile acts, to kill innocents. Yet here she was, a few meters from such a person.

"He told us you've killed innocent people. Was he lying?" Blake questioned.

Arras adamantly shook his head, "Nope, he was telling the truth about that." He began to look thoughtful, "I believe 13 civilians so far." Blake looked astonished, not even the slightest hesitation or look of guilt in his eyes.

"13 innocent people?" she could hardly believe what she was hearing.

"There's no such thing as innocence Blakey, only degrees of guilt, and I feel no guilt for my actions" he spoke calmly.

"Then you are every bit the monster Alex made you out to be" she snapped hardly believing what she was hearing. Arras' eyes grew darker.

"A man who hunted and murdered young girls as some kind of sick blood sport was tracked to the city of Vacuo. It was later uncovered that his number of victims reached the thirties to forties estimate. Can you imagine that? All those lives lost because of one man's depraved actions? I tracked him to the lower quarter of the city" Arras spoke harshly as he pointed to himself. "I had him cornered. Then the asshole grabbed hold of some woman. He held a small blade to her throat" His features grew soft, and the appearance of a demon that Blake had so described him moments ago seemed to fade slightly. "He gave me a choice. Let him go and the woman lives, or try to attack and the woman dies." He paused, staring into Blake's amber eyes.

"What happened?" Blake asked, though a part of her already knew the answer.

"I weighed my options, he covered himself perfectly with her as a human shield, and there was no way I could reach her before he draws the knife across her neck. So…I killed them both" he pointed to his heart. "Arrow, through and through. Both died instantly. I couldn't let him go, not after everything he'd done, and I couldn't risk him attacking more women. Who knows how many more victims he'd have before he was caught or killed?" he stared at Blake, hoping to see her reaction, maybe she'd understand.

Blake shook her head, "You should have found another way"

Arras scoffed "You sound just like Alex, there was no other way, and it was the fastest solution."

"Then you lack patience!" she snapped at him

"And you lack conviction!" he retorted.

They both stared at each other menacingly, the stench of the dead Grimm was starting to get to Arras; he sighed and looked down at his clothes.

"As much as I enjoy this argument, would you mind if we continue it later, I need to clean up and shouting out here may not be for the best."

Blake seemed to relax, coming to the same conclusion as he did. She stared at the dead creatures, she did have other questions for him, maybe the walk back would provide her with the opportunity she needed. They both set off back towards Beacon, the journey was largely uneventful, both maintained silence as they made their way back, after climbing up a ridiculously precarious staircase carved into the side of the cliff, they reached the top where the launch panels were located. They both took a moment to recover pulling the cool night air into their lungs.

"So" Blake began, "Do you mind telling me how you have control of the body? Alex told us you can only do that if he gives you permission and I don't see him doing something like that."

Arras turned to her, "Can you keep a secret?"

Blake blinked in surprise, "You want me to keep one of your secrets?"

"You may not agree with my actions, hell, you may not even like me" Blake folded her arms across her chest and gave Arras a look that basically said, 'You think?' Arras continued however, "But you seem like a trustworthy person to me, I know you would never betray someone's trust, even if it is my trust." Blake unfolded her arms, and gave him a look that said, 'Alright, fine, what is it?'

"Sleep"

"Sleep?" she asked.

"When you enter a deep sleep your consciousness becomes suspended, when this happens I can take control and Alex will never know." He tapped his temple, "Right now his consciousness is sleeping like a baby"

"And Alex has no idea you're doing this?"

Arras shook his head "And he never will as long as you keep your mouth shut"

"But why do this?" she asked. Arras laughed at her question.

"Are you serious? Can you imagine being trapped in a body for most of your life, one that you have no control of? Never deciding what you do, where you go, what you eat? And you're asking me why do I take this opportunity to take control and blow off some steam?"

Blake shook her head, an obvious answer to a silly question.

Arras stared at the raven haired girl, the moon shone brightly and here on the edge of the cliff he finally noticed her outfit. She was wearing black low-heeled boots and stockings that started off black at her hips, but gradually faded to purple as they neared her shoes. She was wearing black ribbons on both of her arms, with a black detached sleeve and a silver band on her left arm. She also wore a black buttoned vest with coattails, and a white, sleeveless undershirt that exposed part of her midriff. Arras couldn't help but drink in her milky white skin that was exposed, he thought of how it would feel beneath his fingertips. She was wearing white shorts although they were partly obscured by her vest. Her shorts had a zipper on the front of each leg; Arras wondered if the zippers served a purpose or were simply decorative. She also wore a detached scarf-like collar around her neck.

"Didn't anyone tell you that it's rude to stare" Arras immediately snapped out of his day dream and stared at Blake, her face had a look of disgust.

"Get over yourself, I was staring at your outfit, hardly practical." He pointed out.

"Heavy armour encumbers my movement; I need to be light on my feet. My speed and agility keep me from real harm."

"I don't know if you noticed back there Blakey, but I'm pretty fast" a sarky grin plastered his face.

Blake laughed softly to herself, a small sweet laugh, Arras had to fight the urge to smile, her laugh was infectious. "I'm sure you are" she turned and began walking back to Beacon. Arras stared at her quizzically.

"Wait, that's not what I meant!" finally catching on, and began chasing after her.

"So" he spoke as he caught up to her, "You're a cat with a sense of humor!" Blake glared at him from the corner of her eye. "That's good, that's very good" he continued, not noticing her glare. "Right, my turn to ask the question, why are you here?"

Blake looked at him suspiciously, "The same reason anyone is here, to train to become a hunter and help maintain peace"

"There are over a dozen Faunus training here and not one of them hide who they are, even if it means ridicule from other students. Why are you here?" he repeated.

Blake had now stopped walking and turned to face Arras. "Why do you think I'm here?"

Arras paused for a moment; he eyed her up and then began to look thoughtful. Minutes passed in silence while Arras worked out his thoughts.

"Right" he began, "Well you've come to Beacon, so I'm sensing a great urge to do right, hmm, maybe atone for some past sins perhaps?" Blake maintained her trademark stare, "You hide your Faunus heritage, which means you know of, or have been the subject of the human prejudice against Faunus, and you're avoiding it. Were you ever a part of the White Fang?" Same steady stare, though the slightest twitch was seen in her left eye at the mention of the White Fang. Arras beamed, "Right, so, you were once a member of the White Fang, you may have performed some questionable acts, not judging here, we're both guilty of that. However you grew tired of their methods or maybe they asked you to commit a crime you refused to be a part of, you left and now you have come to Beacon to do right." Arras shook his head, "I still don't see why you need to hide your ears though."

"I want people to see me for who I am, not what I am" a few moments passed in silence, "Did you really get all that from a few moments of thought?" she asked.

Arras shook his head, "In honesty, I've been thinking about it since you were first introduced to Alex. I just found it curious"

"Well I'm glad my story was able to entertain you" her tone had the hint of agitation.

"Look Blake, you're here training to help others, your heart is in the right place and your feet walk the right path. It doesn't matter what you were Blake, only what you will become." Arras' words struck a chord within Blake and she momentarily let a smile slip through.

"Anyway my clothes are really starting to reek" Blake nodded waving her hand trying to clear the smell, "So I'm gonna go wash up and hope Alex doesn't catch on."

"And I will keep your secret, a part of me still wishes you would talk to Alex about this but as long as he doesn't get hurt and these trips of yours benefit you, I see no harm" she added giving Arras a nod. He returned it and turned towards the western wing of the school. He paused momentarily before turning back to Blake.

"Hey, if I go out like this again, would you, umm, well, would you want to join me?" Arras found that sentence to be incredibly difficult to form, and he shook his head at his own fumbling's.

"You want me to join you?" Blake looked surprised, unsure what to make of this proposition.

"Yeah, it could be fun. We meet up, hunt a few Grimm, kill them, and then are back before sunrise. Whaddaya say?"

Blake pondered for a few moments, her body now felt exhausted and she could feel sleep calling her. This little trip had the desired effect she was after all along; she was sure now that she could finally get some sleep, something that had been eluding her most nights, maybe these trips could be to her benefit. "Alright, but how do we organize it?" Arras looked thoughtful, shaking his head after a few moments.

"I got nothing" a few more moments passed.

"How about.." Blake pondered, "When I see Alex and I say 'I can't wait for bed' that means that I'll be waiting here that night, as for times we just come here the second we get the chance."

Arras nodded, "Sounds good as any plan. I guess I'll see you" Arras hesitated for a moment, "Well I guess I'll talk to you soon. I imagine I'll be seeing you sooner." Blake gave a warm smile.

"Talk soon"

With that Arras headed back to his room.

* * *

**A/N I felt this chapter was necessary to give some disposition on Arras.**

**You guys been watching the new RWBY episodes? Man they are sooo fucking good.**

**Anyway, Ciao :)**


	7. Day-Trip

**A/N I like how in my last chapter I complained that it had taken me a month to get it out, now this one took even longer.**

**Never-the-less, I (finally) managed to get it done, so I hope you enjoy it. :)**

* * *

**Chapter 7: ****Day-trip**

Alex found himself sat at a table outside on the Beacon campus under the midday sun. The blazing heat was beginning to get to Alex as he wiped the sweat from his brow. He stared down at his combat gear, leather was a bad choice. The atmosphere of dozens of students hanging around, chatting or just passing by on their way to their next class filled his ears. He looked up to the sky, the blazing sun beat down on his face, and he wished just once it would rain. He loved the feeling of rain on his skin and the sound of droplets hitting the ground.

He shook himself from his daydream and wrote a few more notes in his scroll. Two weeks had passed since his arrival and he felt now was as good a time as any to fulfill one of his duties as representative of Foresight, which was to look for potential candidates for new Foresight members. The first part wasn't hard, once word had spread that he was in search of new members (Thanks Yang), dozens of students had approached him, each asking to be considered. However there was more to it than simply asking.

First, they must complete their training at Beacon, whist this stage was optional, it was necessary to get an unconditional acceptance into Foresight's ranks. It also meant that they wouldn't need to complete the brutal three month initiation trial offered to any that wished to join but had not trained at any of the combat schools. The trial that had almost claimed his life a dozen times over and it was so harsh and unforgiving that there were nights where Alex was tempted to take his own life just to escape it all. The same initiation, which had claimed the lives of so many others.

"_Lucky S.O.B's"_

Second, and this was what Alex was currently in the middle of, was that their combat skills would have to be evaluated by a team leader of Foresight. He attended dozens of tournament style duels over the past week, each containing a candidate for Foresight. He was now finishing up his report for the 11th candidate.

He was snapped out of his work by a young man with a persistent sneeze sat across the table from him, he looked up at the young blonde haired knight.

"You'd think that the medical center would have something for my allergies" the young man complained.

"Jaune, I don't think many people have allergies anymore" Alex explained.

"Look, all I'm saying is that Hay fever is far more common than people think." He sneezed again, "Urgh, kill me now"

One of the first things Yang and Ruby were insistent on was that Alex met their friends. This led to the inevitable introduction to Team JNPR. An odd group of people that somehow formed a very effective combat team.

There were the two inseparable childhood friends, Li Ren and Nora Valkyrie. Ren reminded Alex of Blake, He was always very calm and Alex could see a hidden intelligence behind his magenta eyes. Alex immediately complimented him on his choice of attire as Ren, much like Alex, wore dark green clothes though Ren's style of clothing was very different from his own. Nora however was the polar opposite of Ren, energetic, hyper active and boundless enthusiasm were just a few words Alex would use to describe her. When he was first introduced to Team JNPR, Nora was the first to meet him, after over enthusiastically shaking his hand she introduced him to the rest of the team before immediately telling him all about this recurring dream she had been having. Once finished she began asking questions; where is Foresight? Where was the rest of his team? Did he really break someone's legs? Does he prefer hot chocolate or coffee?

"_I think if we give this little firecracker some coffee she will either explode or travel through time"_

She was only calmed down after Ren gently placed a hand on her shoulder and asked that she not 'scare the nice man'.

Then there was Pyrrah Nikos, a very composed and collected woman, who despite her apparent celebrity status;

"_Remember, she's won the Mystral regional tournaments four years in a row AND finished top of her class at Sanctum"_

Was very modest and patient around her friends, she was also a formidable warrior having witnessing her in a duel against an entire team and coming out the victor. Why oh why was she not a candidate?

However the young blonde haired knight, the team leader of JNPR, was by far the most intriguing of the bunch, while he was very polite and seemed nice enough, a friendly hello and a hand shake, it was his Aura that got Alex's attention.

"_So what would you say if I told you about a guy whose Aura is so powerful it nearly rivals our combined Aura's? Because he's stood right in front of us."_

An Aura that powerful, Jaune could one day become one of Remnants greatest hunters. However Jaune would need help along the way, as Ruby had told him that Jaune wasn't the strongest or nimblest of fighters. As such Pyrrah had taken it upon herself to train Jaune during their free time, a good first step but Alex felt that something more should be done, though at the moment he was at a loss for ideas, never-the-less he had been slowly building trust with the young knight. A hunter this powerful should have every opportunity to improve his abilities.

Alex stretched and ran his fingers through his messy brown hair, he watched as Jaune was overcome by another barrage of sneezes. A small blue light appeared over Jaune's head before expanding into a large circle, Alex watched as the glyph lowered itself over Jaune's body. Jaune, spotting the glyph froze in fear; it lowered itself to his feet before rising back up, once at Jaune's head, the glyph vanished.

"What was that?" Jaune asked out of confusion.

"That was a healing ward" they heard an Icy tone off to their side. Both Alex and Jaune snapped their head to spot Weiss, who sat herself down next to Alex. "It will stop your infuriating sneezes"

"Well…erm…thanks Weiss" Jaune stammered out, "Wait, did you just say you cured my allergies?" he asked with a mix of surprise and wonder.

Weiss however ignored him and was trying to catch a glimpse of what was on Alex's scroll. Alex pulled his scroll away.

"What do you want Weiss?" he asked. Weiss pulled back before sitting up straight.

"I was wondering how your search was going, found anyone of import?"

Alex eyed her suspiciously before pulling his scroll back out and flicking though the holo-pad, "There are good candidates here, Ozpin should be proud, a lot of capable hunters here." Weiss smiled to herself as if taking the compliment personally. "But I suspect you're here for more than to just check up on me, out with it." Weiss looked at a loss for words, it was clear to her that beating around the bush was a waste of time for him, so instead she tried the blunt approach.

"I want to be considered for Foresight"

Alex stared at Weiss with a look of surprise, he knew from the moment he saw her she was after something, but he never expected this. He turned to Jaune who was not paying attention; the young knight was absorbed in his new life without allergies, a smile of relief across his face. Alex smiled at Jaune's blissful ignorance before turning back to Weiss.

"Why?" was his first of many queries.

"I had heard of Foresight before, my father would tell me about it the few times I would get to talk to him." She lowered her voice in an attempt to imitate her father;

"_Foresight is considered to be one of the greatest academies in all of Remnant, and to be accepted into their elite ranks should be a life goal worth pursuing_."

Weiss looked away, "All my life I've strived to be the best at everything I do, best daughter, best student, best teammate, but the one thing I've wanted more than ever was to be the best huntress, and if going to Foresight helps me achieve that, then that is where I want to go" she finished turning back to Alex.

It was clear that this was something Weiss had been thinking about for a long time.

"Have you told the others of your plan?"

Weiss knew exactly who he meant; she stared down at her lap. "Not yet, I'm not exactly sure what to say." Alex placed a hand on her shoulder; she flinched but did not pull away.

"You'll have to tell them sooner or later, especially Ruby, I imagine she'll take the news the hardest."

"I know" Weiss was looking a little depressed and it was beginning to put Alex off, the usual icy voice and sharp tones gone.

"Look" he said flicking through his scroll, "I'll add you to the list, but I'll hold you in reserve until after you speak to your team, then decide if you really want to go" he gave Weiss a nod, who nodded back.

Flicking through his Scroll Weiss watched as he began scouring through Beacons student roster.

"You have access to our records?" Weiss asked with a little sense of worry.

"Not ALL of your records, just the important parts, name, age, build, weapon of choice, known abilities and Ozpin's personal review of your entrance exam." That last one caught Weiss' attention.

"The review of our entrance Exam?" she asked hesitantly. Alex nodded.

"Weiss Schnee's combat abilities far exceed that of most entrance students." He began. "She shows complete control over her abilities and emotions amidst overwhelming odds and she demonstrates exceptional use of glyphs making her a formidable huntress to even the most fearsome of Grimm"

Weiss was beaming, listening to the praise from the headmaster, "However…" and the smile was gone. "…Miss Schnee's combat prowess leaves little room for outside help, citing that she may prefer to handle combat on her own; this is further established by her personality. Whilst Miss Schnee is respectful to elders her attitude towards others her age is not, often snapping at them for the slightest of mistakes. If Miss Schnee can learn to respect others and learn to form bonds she will be a tremendous asset to any team." Alex finished turning to Weiss, who stared at him with a look of shock.

"That is not true!" she snapped, "You have seen me with Team RWBY, we're friends, granted, there was…some trouble at first, but we grew passed it, and I do not snap, and, and…" Alex raised his hands defensively.

"Hey, they're not my words, don't shoot the messenger." Weiss crossed her arms and pouted. "Besides, this was written during your entrance exam, I'm sure Ozpin has a very different opinion now"

She uncrossed her arms and sighed in resignation, she glanced at Alex's scroll seeing a list of his candidates. Some pretty standard names, some she would have never guessed and one that outright shocked her, her eyes widened seeing the name, she looked at Alex then back at the scroll, clear as day, halfway down the list; _Jaune Arc. _Weiss was about to question Alex about it when he raised a finger to his lips, signalling her to keep quiet.

"I'll tell you later" Alex whispered to her. She put her curiosity aside and nodded to Alex.

"So," Alex began, turning to Jaune and snapping him out of his blissful ignorance, "How is training going with Pyrrah?" Jaune fidgeted slightly.

"They're going good, great even. Pyrrah says my sword play has improved immensely, all thanks to her I guess." Alex and Weiss looked at each other, both sensing Jaune's lacklustre tone and his timid body language.

"What's wrong?" Weiss asked. Again Jaune fidgeted refusing to make eye contact with both of them. Reaching down by his side, Jaune withdrew his sword and placed it onto the table. Alex and Weiss stared at the blade, it gleamed under the midday sun, clearly Jaune was taking excellent care of the weapon, and Alex smiled slightly at this.

"Everyone here has really cool weapons. Sniper scythes, shotgun gauntlets, hammers that turn into grenade launchers, and you!" he spoke looking at Alex, "You have these really cool swords, I don't know what else they can do but I bet you it's awesome!" Alex smiled awkwardly at the unusual compliment. "All I have is this, a sword, it doesn't transform, and it's not a gun or a fire blade"

Alex immediately perked up, a fire blade; he knew how he could help Jaune. Alex reached over and picked up the blade and was surprised at how light the weapon was as he twisted it around eyeing it up from every angle. Holding out his index finger he balanced the blade on top of it, his finger at the joint where the blade met the hilt, the sword balanced perfectly. This wasn't your run of the mill sword; this weapon had been specially crafted by a weapon specialist. He flicked the blade up and caught it in his other hand.

"How often do you maintain the weapon?" he asked. Jaune looked at Alex in confusion. "Maintain it; sharpen, clean, oil..."

"Oh," Jaune interrupted finally getting what Alex meant, "I never do that, never had to." Alex looked at the blade again.

"_Is this sword, HIS sword, made out of the same composite as Athena?" _Arras chipped in; his curiosity piqued enough to add to the conversation.

"It looks that way" Alex replied aloud, his tone flat as he was too busy working out a plan in his mind. Jaune stared at Alex with a mix of confusion; Weiss however merely rolled her eyes at Alex's random answer.

Alex placed the blade back on the table, "I have an idea, Weiss could you please do me a favour?"

"Depends, what is it?"

"I need you to get your rapier, also you may want to change into some street clothes" he commented looking at Weiss' school uniform. Weiss hesitated for a moment.

"I need to change? Fine, but when I get back I want to hear this idea of yours" she spoke as she rose to her feet. Alex nodded to her and watched as she strode back into Beacon.

"Wait here Jaune, I'm going to get changed and collect my weapons" he informed the young knight, Jaune nodded his response and with that Alex headed for his room.

* * *

Twenty minutes later and Alex returned to the table to find Weiss already there.

"Nice outfit" he remarked staring at the white haired girls street clothes. Weiss was wearing a pure white dress with black edging and two columns of black buttons running down her chest. The inside of her knee high skirt contained black frills. She also wore thigh-high white high-heel boots with frilly black thigh-high stockings that come up slightly above the top of her boots. There was a print of a snowflake on her back.

Weiss smiled ever so slightly at the comment, "Your outfit is also….nice" Alex laughed at her awkwardness.

"Please, you don't need to compliment me in return"

"No!" Weiss snapped "I like your outfit, it suits you"

Alex stared down at his clothes; he was wearing a dark green leather jacket that was unzipped, with a plain black T-shirt underneath. He wore dark blue denim jeans with black skate shoes with white laces. His jeans had a dark brown belt, with a green fire emblem for his buckle.

"Well the all leather outfit wasn't working well under the sun, gets too hot" he looked at his outfit once more, "Not bad considering it was a gift from Ozpin" Both Weiss and Jaune shared a look of surprise.

"Wait, _Ozpin, _Ozpin, bought you those clothes?" Jaune asked in surprise, "Why?"

"It's a long story, one that I will tell another time. For now, let's focus on this idea of mine." Alex picked up Jaune's sword which was still laid out on the table. "You wish your weapon was capable of more?" Jaune nodded. "And you are willing to do whatever it takes to accomplish this?" Jaune hesitated this time, and then nodded. "Right, then I want to teach you the art of ABBE" he turned to Weiss with a smile, who stared back at him in disbelief.

"You can't be serious!" she cried.

"But I am. Weiss, a competent hunter can have the basics down in a matter of weeks, give them a month and they're able to push their limits, and we know what they can accomplish in a few years" he gestured to Weiss' rapier.

She withdrew the thin steel blade and held it in front of her, the rotating dust chamber held firmly at the base of the blade which contained six different types of dust, when powered with Weiss' aura she was able to wield the elements through the use of the rapier or power them into glyphs. Weiss turned to Jaune.

"If you're going to learn ABBE then you need to give it 110%, this isn't something you can just slack your way though." She held a menacing finger at him.

"Whoa, I don't even know what ABBE is?" Jaune shot back defensively.

"ABBE" Alex began "Stands for Aura Based Blade Enhancements; it's essentially the art of combining dust with your aura to power your weapon or create glyphs, simple." He finished. Jaune nodded slowly as he wrapped his head around the idea.

"I don't think you know what simple means" Jaune added jokingly.

"It's what I learned to power Myrtenaster. It took years of training for me to get where I am and even then I was told I was a natural, it will require much more from you." Weiss added.

"But" Alex intervened, "I only want to train you in two elements, and only to power your weapon, no glyphs, that's far too advanced and you'll need a Scribe to teach you how to create and wield glyphs. For now, we'll stick with the basics."

Weiss turned to Alex. "Well, that seems much more manageable."

Alex nodded, "Though if we do this we're gonna need a few things. First things first, we'll need a weapon specialist to modify the sword so it can hold the dust."

Weiss waved her hand, "Not an issue, the Schnee Dust Company has a Weapon Specialist in every city across Remnant and I know where to find one in Vale."

They both turned to Jaune, "So, you ready to take another step to becoming a hunter?" Alex asked the young knight. Jaune stood from the table, his blade held in his hands, he sheathed his weapon.

"When do we leave?"

* * *

The group boarded a shuttle bus that was used to ferry students to and from the city of Vale, Alex was glad that he didn't have to hike the distance like he did when he first arrived. Weiss insisted that he let her arrange private transport, perks of the rich and famous he assumed, but Alex shot the idea down.

"_Leave Beacon in a limo? This girl knows nothing of subtlety"_

The ride was largely uneventful, Jaune sat on his own, his blade held in his hands, lost in his thoughts. He sat on his own whilst Alex and Weiss were seated across from him.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Weiss asked, her eyes on Jaune, she turned back to Alex.

"This isn't about what's good; it's about what is best." He turned to Weiss, "And this is for the best"

Weiss looked back to Jaune, "There are dangers learning this technique, what if something goes wrong?" she was adamant to point a flaw in Alex' plan, whether it was out of jealousy that Jaune, someone that Weiss clearly thought was beneath her, would be learning the same technique as her, or out of actual concern, Alex was unsure.

"Then the consequences will be on me. Look, if you honestly believe that Jaune doesn't need the help then we'll get off this bus right now and head back to Beacon" he countered. Weiss stared at him for a moment; he could see the wheels spinning in her head, trying to think of a response. She eventually gave up and looked away.

"I'm just concerned, Okay."

"I get that, but sometimes we have to put our own fears aside and do what's best for others." He assured her. Weiss snorted to herself.

"What made you so wise?" she joked.

"Foresight may be gruelling but co-operation is important as I'm sure it is here, a team that can't work together is no team at all, and you need a team that has your back to face some of the monsters out there." Weiss nodded her understanding. "For today though, let's focus on our knight." They both tuned to Jaune, who was still lost in his thoughts, clutching his blade.

The trio walked the streets of Vale; Alex admired the city, as he never got to appreciate it during his late night arrival two weeks ago. The city bustled with people going about their everyday lives, the city's buildings had a more modern feel, many buildings were built from grey stone and white marble, the tall buildings loomed overhead grazing the sky. Cars drove passed along the narrow roads which broke off into dozens of directions.

"_Good thing Weiss is leading the way, you'd have us lost in minutes" _Arras teased.

"Shut it you, I'm not that bad with directions." Alex shot back.

"_Didn't you lead us into a Deathstalkers Lair?"_

"You know that was a mistake, and that had nothing to do with my sense of direction, thank you very much." Alex scoffed. He caught up to Jaune who was still clutching his blade.

"Talk to me Jaune, what's up?" he asked. Jaune sighed and looked up at Alex.

"Do you think I can do this?" Alex blinked for a moment taken back by the question.

"That's something only you can answer Jaune."

"No" Jaune shook his head, "You know me, and you know what needs to be done. Do you think I can do this?" he repeated. Alex stared at the young knight.

"Before I answer, can I ask, what's got you this way?" Jaune looked at Weiss who was a good few paces ahead.

"I heard what she said on the bus, she doesn't think I can do it. So many people treat me like a child, they doubt me. I just want the chance to prove myself, you know?"

"She's concerned, as am I. Learning ABBE is difficult and challenging. It requires concentration, stamina and most importantly self-control. I know you, and I know what is required, you can do this Jaune, I know this." Alex finished placing his hand on the young man's shoulder. Jaune smiled before looking back at his blade.

"Will my sword change much? After the enhancements, I mean?" Jaune asked.

Alex shook his head, "Not likely, he'll most likely add internal valleys on the inside of the metal, to hold the dust." Alex dragged his finger in a wavy line along the blade illustrating where the valleys would be located.

Jaune smiled at this, "Good, my great, great grandfather used this sword in the Great War. I'd hate to see it change too much." Jaune sheathed his blade.

"Sounds like a family heirloom, a lot of sentimental value in that blade then?" Alex asked. Jaune nodded.

"We're here!" Weiss exclaimed as she held her hand out to a small building inset between two larger ones. Alex eyed up the small store, unlike the other buildings in the city, this one was made from what appeared to be wood or oak. The classic veneer of the store seemed misplaced among the more modern constructs that flanked its sides. Alex stared up at the sign above the door.

"Might and Magic" he raised an eyebrow. "There's no such thing as magic."

"I imagine it's a reference to dust." Weiss added.

"Then why not just name it so?"

"Because _Might and Dust_ doesn't have the same ring to it" Weiss countered.

"These stores and their 'catchy names'" Alex made little air quotations with his hands, "_From Dust Till Dawn _for a Dust shop. _Gym and Tonic _for a training facility. Stupid names if you ask me." He complained.

"Look, do you want to go through with this grand plan of yours or do you want to stand out here and complain about the name some more?" Weiss was becoming agitated by Alex. He shrugged and entered the store, Weiss and Jaune following close behind.

A small bell above the door jingled as the trio entered. They stared at the wide open area in front of them. The shop appeared to be much larger than it seemed, though Alex attributed that to the fact that all the weapons were stacked on the walls either side leaving the floor open, giving it the illusion of being large. Alex scanned the weapons that adorned the walls. Almost every part of it was covered with all manner of weaponry. Swords, maces, axes, even bows and crossbows. As well as dozens of weapons that looked foreign to Alex. The store was made from the same material as the storefront and it smelled of beautifully rich mahogany. On the far side of the store was a large counter with what appeared to be a door leading to another room, the door was slightly ajar, a voice bellowed out from it.

"I'll be right with ya, just give me a minute. Feel free to peruse the wares while you wait." came the heavily accented voice of the clerk.

The group exchanged glances before walking to separate parts of the shop. Weiss instinctively walked over to a large glass cabinet set into the right wall. She admired the dozens of small glass jars, each of them containing different forms of Dust. Whilst she was here she may as well stock up on supplies, she wasn't exactly running low but it never hurt to be prepared. She glanced over a bright red jar, the fine powder held within.

"Alex!" she called out. Alex, who was inspecting the arrows, came to her side.

"What is it?"

"You said you were planning on teaching Jaune in two elements. Which two did you have in mind?" she asked. Alex looked thoughtful for a moment.

"What would you choose?"

Weiss blinked for a moment, "Well, Fire and Ice are the easiest to manipulate, those would be my starting points." Alex nodded his agreement.

"Fire was my first option, I wasn't sure on the other one" he looked at the brightly coloured dust contained within the jars. "Thought it best I ask an experts opinion."

The clerk emerged from the back room, he was a large man, easily towering at 7 foot tall, with arms the size of a bears. Whilst the clerk had the figure of someone intimidating his features were kind and welcoming, the clerk reminded Alex of a friendly giant. Alex also noticed his heavily tanned skin, meaning that he wasn't local and most likely moved here from a hotter climate.

"Welcome to Might and Magic, the name's Baranabus and I…" the large man spoke with a thick accent and his voice trailed off when his eyes fell upon Weiss.

"Dove?" was all he managed to say. Both Jaune and Alex looked confusingly at Weiss whose face had come over with shock, then slowly turned into one of pure delight.

"Barney!" the white haired girl screamed, before bounding towards the large man who picked her up in his behemoth arms. Alex and Jaune stared in a mix of surprise and horror at Weiss' sudden outburst of emotion.

"I've never been so afraid in my life" Jaune whispered to Alex.

"Make it stop" he quickly whispered back. They watched as Baranabus set Weiss back on the ground.

"By the Gods girl, you sure did grow up fast" he spoke staring down at the young woman. Weiss smiled awkwardly. "Well then, aren't ya gonna introduce me to yer mates?" he asked signalling to the two men.

"Right, this is Jaune and Alex. This is Baranabus, our old weapons master at the Weiss estate." Baranabus walked over holding out his hand and Alex took it in a handshake. The shake was firm but Alex could feel the strength in his hand, he didn't doubt that the man could crush his hand with the simplest of ease. Baranabus then shook Jaune's hand.

"It's a bloody pleasure to meet ye's. Are you's fellow huntsman at Beacon?" he quizzed the young men.

"He is." Alex spoke nodding to Jaune, "I'm not from Beacon."

"Oh and where are you from then?"

"Foresight."

Baranabus stroked the stubble on his chin. "Aye, I been there once, nasty place it is." He added. Alex merely nodded not wanting for this particular road in the conversation to carry on. Baranabus noticed the lack of response and quickly moved on. He turned his attention back to Weiss.

"I was wondering when you were gonna visit me, took yer bleedin' time with it though." He chided. Weiss looked at him with a mix of confusion.

"I…didn't know you were in Vale, the last I heard you were in Vacuo." Baranabus stared at the young woman.

"You mean, your father didn't tell you?" he shook his head.

"Tell me what?" she asked, a hint of anticipation and dread at what was about to be said.

"The store in Vacuo, the one I was at, it was razed to the ground. A fire consumed it all; they think it was those bleeding bastards of the White Fang!" Baranabus was growing angry, no doubt the memories returning to him. Weiss closed her eyes and clenched her fists, a ball of anger boiling at the pit of her stomach.

"Afterwards I was offered the position here, and when I heard the beautiful Dove would be attending Beacon, how could I refuse" he added with a smile. This seemed to slightly ease Weiss and a small smile could be seen at the corner of her lips. Alex seized the moment to change the subject to something lighter.

"Weiss said you stayed at the estate? No offence, but you don't strike me as the kind of man they'd hire" Alex queried. Baranabus laughed a loud hearty laugh.

"No, I don't suppose I am." He added.

"My mother hired him" began Weiss "though my father didn't much like Barney."

"Aye, yer father is a bit of a tit." Baranabus joked, Weiss frowned at him but you could clearly see that even she was slightly amused.

"My mother though adored Barney, she took a liking to him the minute they met" continued Weiss. Alex raised a questioning eyebrow at Baranabus who quickly raised his hands.

"Hey there now, not THAT kind of liking" he leaned a little closer to Alex, "Though I'm not saying I didn't think about it." He whispered, though loud enough for everyone to hear. Weiss' frown now turned into a punch to the man's stomach, once again Baranabus laughed, Alex was sure that the large man probably didn't even feel the tiny fist of Weiss connecting with him.

"Alright, alright, nough joking around. Seeing as you weren't here to visit me…" he looked disapprovingly at Weiss who gave him a look of guilt, "That means yer here for some weaponry perhaps?" the large man queried, clasping his hands together.

Jaune stepped forward, "Hi there, the names Jaune Arc, I just want you to know that I'm not the most ablest of fighters, I'm clumsy, I'm prone to mistakes, I once thought a Deathstalker was a relic, yet these two think that somehow giving me the element of fire to play with is a smart idea" Jaune joked.

"Aye, it means they believe in you wee man, an if Dove here believes in you, then you got nothin to worry about." Baranabus assured the young knight. "So tell me what yer wantin?"

Jaune unsheathed his blade and handed it to Baranabus; the large man took the sword and immediately began examining the blade. He walked behind the counter and removed a small monocle device and held it to his right eye as he did the trio gathered in front of the counter watching Baranabus closely.

"We were hoping you could modify the weapon to hold two different types of dust?" asked Alex. Baranabus however seemed lost in his thought. A few moments passed in silence.

"Barney?" Weiss spoke. Baranabus leaned away from the blade.

"Do you know what material this is?" the large man asked as he held up the blade. Jaune looked at the others before shaking his head. "This ere is a rare material called Emmarian steel. It's strong, resilient, can be re-forged and altered without sacrificing the quality of the metal. It has a sister metal called Avarian steel. Now Avarian is lighter and can be worked into sharper blades however it cannot be altered, the metal it prone to splintering and the quality turns shite if you try to rework the metal. You chose wisely with Emmarian steel, I should have no problem making the modifications." Baranabus finished.

"Erm, I didn't actually make the weapon, it's a hand-me-down. My great, great grandfather used it in the Great War." Jaune added. Baranabus stared at the blonde knight.

"Then your great, great granddaddy planned on this blade being reworked, otherwise he would have gone with Avarian for a deadlier blade."

"Is Avarian really that good" Jaune asked. Baranabus turned his attention to Alex.

"Why don't you ask yer mate, he uses it" Alex stared back with a small mix of confusion. On instinct he reached behind his back and withdrew one of his blades. The curved, transparent blade gleamed in the light.

"Deadly as fuck it is, but you won't be able to change the weapon without destroying it. Yer arrows on the other hand..." Baranabus looked over Alex' shoulder at the arrow fletching's protruding over his shoulder. He held out his hand to Alex, who sheathed his blade and removed an arrow from his right quiver, he placed it in the large man's hand. Baranabus set to work examining the arrow, after a few seconds he held the arrow in both hands, applying pressure to its centre the arrow gave way under the man's strength. With a loud cracking noise the arrow snapped in half.

"What are you doing?!" Alex shouted. Baranabus merely held up his hand silencing Alex. The large man walked over to a large glass cabinet to his right, within it was all manner of archery accessories; from stabilizers to modified sights, Baranabus however removed one of the black arrows hooked at the top of the cabinet.

"Yer arrows, carbon fibre, correct?" the man asked. Alex nodded with a small look of anger on his face, still displeased that he snapped one of his arrows.

"_He better replace it"_

"Tell me" the clerk continued, "Have you noticed yer arrows cannae punch through the Grimm's armour?" he asked. Alex' thoughts immediately turned to his first fight with a Deathstalker, his arrows bounced off of the massive scorpion's armour; he may as well have been using spit balls.

"Now this" he spoke as he held up the black arrow, "Is an aluminium-carbon composite arrow" the man began to apply pressure to the centre of the arrow, to snap it like he did to Alex's. However, this time the arrow wouldn't break.

"Strong as hell but light as fuck, this arrow won't only pierce through a Grimm's armour but it'll bloody come out the other side and hit his mate behind him." Baranabus finished with a grin. Alex blinked in disbelief, he could already think of dozens of situations in his life where arrows like that would have been useful. Alex stared at the large man.

"How much are they?" he asked. Baranabus turned to Weiss who gave a small nod.

"They're on the house, courtesy of the Schnee Dust Company." The man boomed. Alex turned to Weiss.

"You're buying me a gift?"

"Both of you, actually." She added. "See to it that Jaune's request is taking care of." She spoke to Baranabus.

"Course" The large man retrieved a dozen arrows from the cabinet, Alex removed his right quiver and handed it to the clerk. Baranabus removed his old arrows and nocked the new ones, handing Alex back the quiver.

"Now the other one." Baranabus held out his hand to Alex. Alex turned to the fletching's sticking out from the left quiver.

"That won't be necessary; I don't want to replace these arrows"

The large man raised an eyebrow. Alex removed one of the arrows, it was similar to the other arrows, yet instead of an arrowhead, there was a small pyramid like tip holding what appeared to be a dark blue powder. Everyone leaned in for a closer inspection. Weiss immediately pulled away.

"Is that…?" she stammered.

"That's bloody Arc dust. What are you doing with that on yer arrow?!" Baranabus bellowed.

"What do you think I use it for, fireworks? I charge it with my Aura and unleash at my foes." He answered.

Weiss looked at him with a look of horror; "You charge it with your Aura?! Do you have any idea how unstable Arc dust is? You could kill yourself; the smallest amount of Aura could cause it to explode. How reckless are you?!" Weiss' Icy tone was back in full force.

"I'm not a child Weiss; I know what I'm doing. This is my last resort arrow; it's the only Arc one I have, the rest are other dust-tips as well as a few of my own invention." Alex retorted. Baranabus leaned away.

"That's a bloody good idea these, using dust on yer arrows, those'll ruin anyone's day, but the wee girls right, you've gotta be careful with Arc, you don't wanna blow yourself up before ye even start the fight." The large man chided.

Alex nocked the arrow back in its quiver, "A guy with my history, dying because he electrocuted himself, pretty silly way to go."

"Aye, but it'd make me laugh." Baranabus added with a grin.

"Now wasn't I supposed to make some modifications, leave me be while I do this, come back in a couple of hours and I'll show you what old Baranabus can do" The large clerk hurried the trio out of the door, and in an instant the three found themselves outside under the blazing sun.

"That is one strange man." Jaune finally spoke.

"A funny guy in my opinion, you were lucky to have a friend like him growing up." Alex added, turning to Weiss.

"I didn't have time for friends growing up, but you're right, he was as close as one came. I'm glad to have seen him again." Weiss smiled ever so slightly.

"Right" she added, the smile fading, "We have a few hours to spare, what should we do?"

"I say we show Alex around town, oh, we should take him bowling!" Jaune added with a grin.

"Maybe another time, for now let's just show him the sights." Weiss finished spinning on her heels and walking down the street. Being left little choice, the men followed her.

* * *

The sights were a little lacklustre if Alex was to tell them the truth; they showed him theatres, shops, the bowling alley, and some landmarks. They trio stopped just shy of a large warehouse looking building.

"That is the nightclub, if you're a seedy, bloodthirsty brute looking to get drunk and start a fight, that's where you go." Weiss spoke with a disgusted tone; clearly she held no love for these types of places.

"Doesn't Yang go here?" Jaune queried.

"My point exactly" she added.

"Yang goes here?" Alex asked.

"That's what I heard; apparently she busted the place up a while back, now the owner fears her and gives her anything she wants." Jaune answered. Alex gave a satisfied look, clearly this was a story he needed to hear. Weiss withdrew her scroll.

"Well it's been over three hours, I say we head back and see if Barney is done with the modifications." The two young men nodded their agreement and they set off towards the small store.

The small bell above the door jingled as the trio entered the small store, Baranabus seemed to be polishing Jaune's sword at the counter.

"I said a couple of hours, did ye's get lost or something?" The large man mocked.

"Taking a stroll through town, seeing the sights and all that." Alex replied.

"Is that…?" Jaune spoke as he approached the counter.

"Aye, it is." Baranabus spoke as he held the sword up for them to see. As Alex had predicted, not much had changed in the blade, however, the edges of the blade were a slightly lighter colour, as if hollowed out.

"Let me show you how it works." The man spoke as he walked over to one of the glass cabinets set into the wall, he unlocked the door. "Which dusts were ye's thinking?"

"Fire and Ice." Weiss replied. Baranabus nodded, removing two glass vials from the cabinet, one containing red dust, the other containing a light blue. The man held the blade with the tip pointing down.

"Now, you see here on the handle, there's a small switch." Baranabus flicked the switch, and the blade spun ninety degrees at the hilt. Two holes were now visible at the base of the blade; Baranabus began emptying the contents of the dust into the blade, a vial for each side. Once full he flicked the switch and the blade snapped back into position. He held the weapon upright, and the lighter hollowed out parts of the weapon were now coloured appropriately, one side a deep red, the other a light blue.

The large man handed Jaune back his weapon, "You'll also need these" he said as he handed Jaune another two vials of dust. "For when you inevitably run out."

Jaune stared in disbelief at his new weapon, "I can't believe I get to wield fire. I apologise in advance if I set something on fire." Jaune joked, "Or someone" he added in a much quieter tone.

"Ha" the large man boomed, "There is nothing more satisfying than setting the Grimm on fire"

"That's….a little dark." Jaune added.

"Dark?" the man bellowed in disbelief, "When the Grimm kill someone close to your heart, not only will you enjoy setting them in flames; you'll bloody laugh at them as you do it."

Jaune stared at his weapon, clearly such a dark trait was something the heart of gold knight couldn't fathom.

"_In some sense, some of these hunters are still just kids_" Arras pointed out, "_They have a lot of growing up to do"_

"And a lot of lessons to learn" added Alex.

"Now, if that's all I'll be closing up shortly" the man spoke clasping his hands together.

"We should be heading back anyway, I imagine the others will be wondering where we are." Weiss added. Baranabus pulled Weiss into a hug.

"Now that you know where I am, don't hesitate to visit me"

"I won't, I promise" Weiss released herself from the embrace.

"Now get out of here, I'm sick of looking at your faces" the man boomed in a jolly tone. The trio bid their farewells and set off towards the shuttle bus for their trip back. On the bus Jaune couldn't help but admire the newly modified weapon.

"Could you both do me a favour; if possible, could you not let anyone know about the modifications to Jaune's weapon. I think it would be best to show them when the time is right." Alex asked. Jaune and Weiss looked at one another, before agreeing to Alex' strange request.

"When do we begin training?" Jaune asked turning to Alex who was sat across from him.

"As early as possible, when are you next free?" Alex queried.

"Tomorrows Saturday, so I've got no classes."

"Then tomorrow it is. Meet me at the training centre at 10am sharp, we'll go from there." Alex finished.

"Will you be joining us?" Jaune looked at Weiss.

"I'm afraid I'll have to pass on tomorrow, I have other plans, but seeing as Alex uses his Aura to charge his dust arrows, he should be more than capable of training you."

Alex turned to Jaune with a smug grin, "Weiss just gave me a compliment."

"Yeah yeah, don't let it go to your head." Jaune quickly retorted.

The trio disembarked from the bus just outside the Beacon campus. It was getting late in the day and the sun was beginning its slow decent into the horizon, the clouds lazily trailed the sky as the sun burned the skyline a beautiful orange. The campus was a lot quieter than when they had departed, few students lounged around on the campus greens or at the tables. The group were about to head their separate ways.

"Where have you been?" The group spun to see the rest of team RWBY behind them.

"I left you dozens of messages." Complained Ruby, the young dark haired girl held a frown.

"I took a trip into town. I apologize for not letting you know where I was going, but it was a secret errand." Ruby's face immediately changed from a frown to one of joy and curiosity.

"Oh, what were you doing?" Ruby was now getting giddy.

"None of your business, and it wouldn't be a secret if I told you now, you dunce." Ruby pouted.

"There's the Ice queen we all know and love" Yang added sarcastically.

"Hey!"

"Ice queen? That's her nickname?" Alex asked.

"Oh please don't you get started to." Weiss added in frustration.

"I'm just saying, given Yang's love for puns I'm surprised she doesn't call you the 'Weiss' queen." he joked. Yang over enthusiastically slapped her thigh.

"'Weiss' queen. I love it!" The tall blonde exclaimed.

"Urgh" Weiss sighed in frustration. "You're not supposed to encourage her!"

"Why not?" added Alex, "It seemed like a 'Weiss' idea to me" Alex stifled his laugh upon seeing Weiss' face at his terrible pun. If looks could kill. Yang, Ruby and Jaune however couldn't help but laugh. Blake merely stared at Alex.

"Come on Blake, it was pretty funny." Alex pointed out.

"What's the matter Blake, cat got your tongue." Yang joked. Blake rolled her eyes at her teammate and began walking towards Beacons main hall.

"Come on Blake, Yang was only 'kitten' around" Alex called out. Yang, Ruby and Jaune now began laughing hysterically. Weiss gave Alex an Icy glare.

"After today you resort to childish behavior, I expected better from you Alex." The Ice queen sneered.

"Oh come on Weiss, my parents were killed when I was young I trained at one of the most unforgiving academies all my life and you're saying I'm not entitled to a bit of fun. Blake knows we're joking, lighten up a little." He finished.

"Oh" Yang butted in, "Get wrecked Weiss" Weiss stomped her foot in frustration, and followed after Blake. Still laughing from the bad puns, Ruby and Jaune followed.

Yang put her arm around Alex' shoulder, "Those were some good puns, I'm impressed." She began leading the young man towards Beacon. "But you have a long way to go young grasshopper."

"A long way to go."

* * *

**A/N Not a very exciting chapter but it was necessary for future plots, also it was a test to see how I do with some characters personalities, so feel free to let me know if I nailed it or failed it.**

**Also anyone seen new episodes of RWBY? Cinders weapon perhaps? Seriously Monty you're killing me here :P**

**Anyway I've already started on the next chapter, got a good fight scene coming up, really excited.**

**Anyway thanks for reading this, see you next month (probably, most likely) Ciao :)**


	8. The Duel

**A/N, I DID IT! My first 10,000+ chapter and man was it a struggle.  
Anyway, here it is, enjoy :)**

* * *

****Chapter 8: The Duel****

Yang strode over to her table. The refectory was situated in a grand hall, capable of housing the hundreds of students that attended Beacon. Long oak tables, each able to seat dozens of students, ran in long lines along the length of the hall. Along the walls ran vending machines and on the far end the cafeteria was situated. The walls were decorated with large windows that allowed the midday sun to pour in. Needless to say the hall was packed with students; chatter filled the air as countless students enjoyed their meals or simply sat with friends lazing around before their next class. Yang didn't have any trouble navigating her way to her table. Standing at less than 6"feet tall, Yang towered over most students. Everyone from first years to seniors knew of Yang's combat prowess, having never lost a single match against another student. That's not to say they were afraid of Yang, quite the contrary actually. Most people loved Yang, especially the boys (For obvious reasons). However Yang held a menacing stare after receiving some bad news and most people were smart enough to know that when Yang Xiao Long is pissed, you stay out of her way. In a matter of moments Yang was able to reach her table where both Team RWBY and JNPR were seated.

Yang slammed her dinner tray onto the table, startling her friends. Team RWBY and JNPR regularly enjoyed their lunches together, and today was no exception. Everyone stared at the visibly disgruntled Yang as she began to viciously stab her steak with a fork, as if at any moment it might come alive and kill everyone she cared about. Yang glared at her friends who immediately avoided eye contact or pretended as if they were never staring in the first place.

"Hey, where's Jaune?" queried Ruby, who noticed a lack of presence from the young blonde haired knight.

"He's training with Alex, again." replied Pyrrah, her tone evidently showing her displeasure at this scenario.

"They've been training fo…" Blake was interrupted as Yang once again slammed her fork into her steak. "They've been training for weeks." Blake was finally able to say.

Over the past three weeks Jaune had spent every free moment he had training with Alex. A fact, that his friends were beginning to find rather worrisome.

"He even cancelled his training schedule with me to train more with Alex." Pyrrah pointed out. The tall, redheaded, Amazonian like warrior had a hard time seeing the benefits of this new arrangement, after all, she knew little of Alex, and Jaune was her friend, her leader, how could she be sure Alex' training was what was best for Jaune.

"You just need to trust Alex, I'm sure it'll work for the best." reassured Weiss.

"You always defend him, ever since you guys took that trip into town. What did you guys do there?" asked Ruby. Once again however, Weiss waved her hand as if dismissing anything shady.

"Nothing, as I've said a dozen times. Look, training with Alex is Jaune's choice; we should at least respect that." The young heiress tried her best to reassure her friends.

"Erm…" Ren began, watching Yang mutilate her steak, "I think its dead Yang."

Yang glared at the dark haired man, who immediately looked away, her lilac iris now a blood red.

"Still no luck?" asked Blake. Yang's response was some disgruntled mumblings followed by a few more vicious stabs to her now ruined steak. "Did she at least elaborate on her reasons behind her decision?"

Yang sighed, "Goodwitch said that I can only duel students of my year and only those of similar skill. Seeing as I've bested everyone at my level I can no longer participate in duels, and with no-one wanting a re-match, all I can do is sit here…" she punctuated her point by stabbing her food.

"And wait…"

Another stab,

"And wait…"

Another stab,

"And wai…"

"We get it Yang, you're frustrated." Weiss complained, growing impatient with the woman's loud banging. Yang glared at the Ice queen before turning to her food. Yang lived for the fight, the thrill of combat, without it she grew frayed and restless. There were always field trips and missions to go on to sate her appetite, but those were few and far between. Two weeks without a duel and it was beginning to get to her, she needed a cure for her itch.

"I'm sorry sis, looks like there's no-one in this school left to fight. Looks like you're going to have to find another way to ease your tension" Ruby pointed out.

Yang was about to plunge her fork into her sorry excuse for a steak, but stopped mid stab. She peeled her eyes away from her food, her head slowly rising as an epiphany dawned on her. She quickly rose to her feet and headed for the cafeteria doors.

"Wait, where are you going?" Ruby called after her. Everyone stared at the tall blonde. Yang spun around.

"There's no-one left in _this_ school to fight, but luckily we know someone who _isn't _from this school." She spoke with a wicked grin on her face. She spun back around and headed towards the door.

"Wait, that's not what I meant at all!" Ruby bellowed at her sister, but it was too late, Yang had already passed through the doors.

"Why do you always make bad decisions from my good advice!" the young girl screamed.

* * *

Alex' blades came down on Jaune's head, the young knight barely managing to block the blow with his own weapon. Alex applied force, causing Jaune to collapse to his knees. Pulling his blades away, Alex quickly brought his knee up, connecting with Jaune's chin. The young knight gave a whelp of pain and stumbled back, however Jaune, extending his shield, threw it at Alex. Caught off guard, the shield connected with Alex' chest and he was sent flying through the air. Jaune leapt high, catching his shield on the rebound, and with all the strength he could muster came crashing down on Alex.

Recovering from the blow Alex quickly righted himself mid-air, and upon landing leapt back, clear from Jaune's aerial attack. Jaune's blade connected harmlessly with the ground sparks flashing as it did.

Alex spun quickly attaching his blades and launching a volley of arrows at Jaune's head, Jaune raised his shield, the arrows embedding themselves in the metal. Alex nocked one of his dust tips and launched it at Jaune's exposed feet. Jaune blocked his vision with his shield and was unable to see the incoming arrow until it was too late. The arrow connected with Jaune's leg exploding in a casing of ice trapping the young knight from the waist down. Jaune stared at his ice prison.

Satisfied, Alex detached his blades and charged at Jaune. The knight began desperately hacking away at the ice in a mad bid to free himself. He silently cursed his inability to use his fireblade. He trained hard in the hopes of mastering the technique quickly. However, as he was warned the use of dust enhancements was a difficult task and Jaune was met with failure at every turn. As it was Alex sought to train Jaune in a more practical combat sense, and as he could clearly tell, that wasn't going so well either.

Alex was closing the gap and Jaune was no closer to freeing himself, panic began to set in and in one last attempt he swung his blade wide in the hopes of catching Alex off guard. However, the young knight, in his panicked state, swung too early, leaving his chest exposed as Alex closed the gap. Alex leapt at the last moment bringing his knee smashing into the young man's ribs; the force tore Jaune free from his ice prison and sent him sprawling across the floor, his sword and shield sliding out of his grasp.

Jaune coughed and gasped as the air was forced out of his lungs. Alex strode over to the injured knight.

"What was your first mistake?" Alex quizzed.

"Agreeing to fight you?" Jaune spluttered between desperate gasps for air. Alex rolled his eyes.

"You gave into fear" he answered.

"I was…was just about to say that, I gave into fear." Jaune clutched his ribs, but sighed relief as his Aura numbed his pain. Alex knelt down next to Jaune.

"What is our greatest enemy on the battlefield?" Alex asked. Jaune looked up to his new trainer.

"Erm, the Grimm?" he answered unconfidently.

"Fear"

"See, I was just about to say that as well, fear." Jaune joked.

"The moment you give into fear is the moment you lose everything, including your life if you're not careful. Remember, you're a team leader Jaune, others will look to you for guidance, and it's up to you to carry that responsibility." Alex lectured.

"How do you do it, lead I mean? Sometimes I feel like everything is gonna fall apart, me, the team, everything. I feel like I'm bluffing my way through this, scraping by, by the skin of my teeth and I know that's not good enough." Jaune looked at Alex, who had sat down next to him.

"No one can be taught how to be a leader Jaune, most of it comes naturally. Ozpin picks the leaders of each team personally, and if he chose you then that must mean he sees something in you, even if you do not." Alex stared at the knight, who gave a slow nod. "But, if you want I'll give you some advice."

"I get the feeling I'm not going to like it." Jaune joked, Alex gave a small smile.

"It is your responsibility to make sure you and your team come back alive." Alex spoke.

"I already know tha…" Jaune was interrupted by Alex, who held up his hand.

"But it is also your burden to know that you cannot." He finished. Jaune blinked in confusion.

"What do you mean 'I cannot'?" he asked.

"Jaune, it will be up to you to make life and death decisions for your team during combat and no-one is perfect, everyone makes mistakes. The difference for team leaders is our mistakes could cost someone their life. We need to be prepared for that eventuality." Jaune had looked away trying to rap his head around this possibility no doubt. Alex leaned in closer; "Trust me Jaune, I know it's not something anyone wants to think about, but it's our burden, our responsibility. If and when it happens, it will cripple you if you let it. That pain and guilt is more deadly than any Grimm, or any weapon. I'm only saying this to prepare you." Alex finished, the blonde man still avoided eye contact, clearly deep in thought.

Alex sighed, "_Bravo, cripple the guy with fear, that'll make him a good leader" _Arras teased.

"He needs to hear it, better this than learning it the hard way." Alex pointed out.

"_Bah, the hard way isn't all bad; you were only clinically depressed for two months"_

Alex winced, harsh and painful memories flooding back to him.

"I know that I'll make mistakes, and that I'll stumble and sometimes fall." Jaune began, "But I will not let any of my friends die, even if I have to give my own life to protect them!" Jaune finished, his face held a look of utter determination. Alex smiled at the young man.

"See? I told you Ozpin saw something in you." Alex turned to Jaune, "If you are to remember anything about being a leader, hell, being a huntsman, remember this…"

"You are a huntsman  
you will help those who need it  
Protect those who cannot defend themselves  
and stand tall when everything else seems to fall

Should you lead the fight against the evil in this world  
you will be a beacon of light for the vanguard  
and should the darkness come crashing down on you  
be the wall the darkness breaks itself upon

You are a huntsman"

Jaune gave a baffled look, "That sounds more like a creed than advice." Jaune pointed out. Alex laughed.

"Actually it's a bit of both, it's my team's creed, and it's what we live by. Every team in Foresight has one, think of it as, operational rules. Guidelines that you expect your team to follow. As well each member has their own singular motto, usually you create it yourself, and sometimes it's given to you by your reputation." Alex finished.

"So what's yours?" Jaune asked out of curiosity. Alex fumbled with one of his quivers on his back and handed it to Jaune, he pointed to its back. Jaune inspected the quiver, there was something written along its spine.

"'Don't run, you'll only die tired'" Jaune read aloud.

"It was given to me for my love of arrows." Jaune handed Alex back his quiver.

"So what do you think my motto would be?" asked Jaune. Alex looked thoughtful for a moment; a smile crept across his face.

"How about, 'Oh god, oh god, please not the face?'" joked Alex.

"Ha-Ha" Jaune responded by punching Alex on his arm, Alex laughed rising to his feet. He helped Jaune to his.

Alex looked around the duel ring. It was pretty standard as far as arenas went. The arena itself was about one hundred meters in diameter with a large wall surrounding it. On the far north side was the arena entrance, beyond was where the participants would prepare themselves. Above the wall on all side were rows of seats, each slightly more elevated than the last. This allowed hunters to observe their fellow students.

"You know for someone who is supposed to be training me, you sure do give some crappy advice." Jaune complained.

"What?" Alex had a genuine look of betrayal on his face. "I gave you great advice before." Jaune looked at him questioningly. "You know the one about fear" Alex pointed out.

"Oh yeah, never give into fear, I remember"

"Seriously though Jaune, I can't stress enough how important it is to never let fear win." Alex repeated.

"I got, never let fear win, don't worry, I'll do my best." Jaune reassured.

At that moment the arena doors swung open with a thundering noise.

"Alexander Cross!" A bellowing voice rang out across the arena. Both men turned to see Yang, confidently striding over towards them, a wicked grin on her face.

"The fear is back" Jaune quickly whispered to Alex.

Yang stopped just in front of Alex, their height was equal, and she stared into his eyes, her grin held in its place.

"Jaune?" Yang spoke to the young knight but kept eye contact with Alex. "The others are looking for you, I think its best you go to them" she spoke clear and confidently.

"Right," Jaune blurted, the knight had already began leaving the ring before he had even finished talking. "My friends, best I go to them, they could be worried or maybe…." His voice trailed off as he stumbled through the doors.

The ring fell into silence as the two hunters glared each other down.

"Might I ask why you interrupted my training session?" Alex asked. Yang's grin widened.

"I have an offer for you." Alex merely raised his eyebrow. "You." She pressed her finger into Alex's chest. "Me."

"_Sex?"_ Arras interrupted.

"Duel." Yang finished.

"_Dammit." _

Alex gave the woman a puzzling look, "You want to duel me?"

"What's the matter? Afraid?" Yang teased.

"Ha, hardly, just surprised." He responded.

"So? You want to test yourself against me, or would you prefer to test yourself against Jaune day in and day out?" her grin never wavered, Yang was confident that she was going to get her wish.

Alex wasn't particularly pleased with the way Yang talked about Jaune, but there was truth to it. While Jaune had made serious strides in his abilities he still wasn't much of a challenge for Alex' experience, someone like Yang however…

"Alright, I'm in." Alex bluntly put. Yang blinked for a few moments in disbelief.

"Seriously just like that? I was sure you'd put up more of a fight."

"And miss out on my chance to beat Yang Xiao Long, how many guys can say they've done that?" Alex spoke with small grin on his lips.

"None so far" Yang responded, her own grin only growing wider.

"Guess I'll be your first then."

Yang was smiling, "You're so confident, good, and beating you will be oh so sweet."

"Keep dreaming Xiao long, so you wanna do this now?" he asked.

"Whoa, hold your horses there stallion, first we need permission, which means talking to Goodwitch."

* * *

Alex followed Yang through the hallway as she led the way to Goodwitch's office. Alex was feeling a bit of guilt; even though all of his communication during his trip to Beacon was through Goodwitch he had never actually taken the time to meet her. However his guilt was immediately extinguished when his eyes became glued to Yang's hips, their sway held him in a trance.

"_HA! And you call me a perv!" _teased Arras. Alex immediately snapped his eyes to the back of Yang's head. "_Oh, don't let me interrupt you, by all means stare away." _Arras continued to tease.

"I wasn't staring, I was…I was just deep in thought." Alex countered.

"_Bull-fucking-shit you were, I live in here and I know exactly what you were thinking about!"_

Alex rolled his eyes, of course he knows; he cursed himself slightly for such a pure excuse.

"_Look, why don't you just do us both a favor and stare at that fine ass, we both know you want to." _Arras was enjoying the torment of his other half, Alex was still, at the end of the day, an eighteen year old man, it was in his nature to be attracted to beautiful things and as far as Arras was concerned, Yang's rear was certainly a thing of beauty. Alex however refused, continuing to stare at the back of Yang's head as she led them through the maze that was Beacons interior.

"_Stare at it." _Insisted Arras.

"No!" Alex snapped back.

"_Stare at it!"_

"NO!"

"_STARE. AT. IT!"_

Alex relented, his eyes drawing down Yang's beautiful frame, her long golden locks flowing down her back, reaching all the way down slightly passed her waist. As Yang walked her hair swayed gracefully side to side allowing Alex short glimpses of her rear.

"_For all we know she might like the attention, she probably gets it a lot from other guys." _Arras mused. Alex darted his eyes back to eye level. _"Hey! What happened to my happiness, why aren't you staring?"_

"You said it yourself, other guys probably ogle her, and I'm not like other guys." Alex stated. Arras's laugh was loud, so loud in fact that it prevented Alex from thinking straight.

"_Not like other guys? Are you fucking serious? Look, apart from the back seat driver in your head and your ability to roll your tongue, physically, you're exactly like other guys. Unless of course, you're not interested in girls?" _he teased.

"What!? No! I'm interested in girls!" Alex shot back.

"_Whoa, no need to get so defensive, just know I'd love you no matter who you were interested in." _Arras mocked. "_Well if its girls you like then why aren't you exactly like other guys? Cause unless our dick stopped working you want to stare at her just as much as I do."_

"Will you shut it Arras, you're making it hard to focus!" Alex snarled.

"_Hey, we both know that it's Yang here that's making it hard."_

Alex groaned aloud at how painful it was to hear such a terrible innuendo.

"_Inyourendo"_

Yang stopped in front of a large wooden door set into a large white marble wall, a small dark plaque to the left of the door read, _Miss Goodwitch. _Yang spun to face Alex.

"We're here." She stared at Alex questioningly, the entire time Alex was silent and always a few paces behind her, now however she could see Alex' twisted expression. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"What? Of course I am!" he quickly responded.

"Not getting cold feet are we?" Now Yang was beginning to tease Alex. He could not catch a break.

"No, right now a good duel is something I sorely need." He answered, regaining a small amount of his composure. Yang smiled at his response and rapped her knuckles against the door.

"Enter." A stern voice called from behind the door. Yang pushed it open and they both stepped into the office. The office was smaller than Ozpin's but no less distinguished. Apart from the obvious chairs and desk the walls held a dozen pictures just like Ozpin's office, however all the pictures were in black and white. Three tall windows were spaced against the back wall giving them a clear view of Beacons main walkway, they could see countless students outside, however from the height they were at it was difficult to make anyone out. Against the middle window a slender figure of a woman stood. She spun on her heels and her eyes immediately set upon Alex.

She was a middle-aged woman with light-blonde hair tied in a bun with a curl hanging down her face. Her eyes were bright green and she wore thin rectangular glasses. She had teal hanging earrings with a small bead identical to the one on her collar. She wore a white long-sleeved suit that exposed part of her chest. Her lower body was covered with a black business skirt with buttons running in a vertical line up the front of it and lighter black-brown stockings. She wore black boots with brown heels, and a tattered cape that is purple inside and appeared to be black on the outside.

"_MILF!" _Arras cried out. Alex tried his best to stifle his laugh at such a random outburst.

"We don't know if she has kids though." Alex pointed out. Arras was silent for a moment.

"_COUGAR!" _he cried.

Goodwitch briskly walked across the room and shook his hand.

"My name is Miss Glynda Goodwitch." She spoke sharply.

"My name is-"

"I know who you are." She cut him off. "Ozpin has told me all about you." She returned to stand behind her desk. Yang and Alex shared a confused look.

"All good things I hope?" Alex tried to sound unoffended by her attitude.

"They were, but while I trust Ozpin, when it comes to guests of this school I like to perform my own background check." She picked up her scroll and began flicking through it. "Needless to say Ozpin left out a few important details."

"_Oh come on, we had such a good thing going, don't ruin this by being a bitch." _pleaded Arras. Alex wasn't terribly troubled by her words, most background checks came up with the same BS he had heard a thousand times, however he was still wary. Someone like Goodwitch may be far more thorough than most in her check and she may have dug up something she shouldn't have. Never-the-less the judgement of strangers was a peeve of Alex' and nothing brought him to anger faster.

"Why not do me the honors and tell me what your check turned up?" he queried. Goodwitch turned to Yang.

"Leave us." she wasn't asking.

"Yang stays." countered Alex. Yang stared bewildered between the two. All she wanted to do was ask permission for a duel, now she was stuck in the middle of a feud.

"I believe it's in your best interest to let Yang leave." She informed him.

"I decide what's in my best interest. Yang stays." He repeated.

"Very well then." She held her scroll out in front of her and paced back and forth behind her desk.

"Alexander Cross, no family or relatives and no record of you before the age of fourteen when an Alexander Cross completed his initiation into Foresight. You became the youngest hunter to complete the Gauntlet trials just six months later. At fifteen years of age the first reports of murder against you were filed for the death of five prisoners, other reports were issued but all were dismissed by Foresight as 'Collateral Damage'. At aged sixteen team BARK suffered heavy casualties, the report suggested your team lead, Tiberius Blackwall, was killed in combat, you immediately assumed command and was forced to make a decision that saved the life of one member, a Razlov Drakon whilst sacrificing the other, a man by the name of Hector Krippler. Afterwards you were promoted to team leader with only one surviving member. One year later you had recruited two more members, Ashton Clave and Zinear Kitara, forming team AZRA." She finally finished.

Alex relaxed slightly, nothing there that really stood out; why she was acting bitter was beginning to be confusing. "Is that all you got?" he asked.

"No." she put bluntly. "I tracked down an important event that occurred four years ago after you finished the Gauntlet Trials."

"_She knows about Geralt!" _Arras quickly blurted out, his tone filled with fear. Alex' hairs immediately stood on end and his heart thundered in his chest.

"Once you became champion of the Gauntlet you ousted the existing champion, a man by the name of Geralt Riverian." Goodwitch continued, "After two duels, one where he bested you, then another where you bested him, he disappeared for two years only to return and launch an unprovoked attack against you. The resulting clash left you hospitalized and three members of Foresight dead with many more injured. Geralt fled the scene and has been wanted by authorities ever since. Since the attack Geralt has launched numerous assaults against you and your team, usually with this monster killing anyone who gets in his way, mostly innocent bystanders." Goodwitch finished, she slammed her scroll down on the table.

"Wherever you go this monster follows and people get killed! Why on Remnant did you think coming to this school was a good idea?" she demanded.

Goodwitch didn't know the whole story, precautions had been taken, plans for weeks. Why hadn't Ozpin filled in his staff on all of this?

"_Maybe he didn't think anyone would find out?" _Arras pointed out. Either way this was a serious situation. Alex removed his own scroll quickly sent out a message before closing it.

"What did you do?" Goodwitch demanded. Alex ignored her, instead turning to Yang who was stood off to his side, her expression filled with confusion.

"I'm sorry about all this; I didn't know we were walking into an interrogation." Alex glared at Goodwitch.

"Who's this Geralt guy, he sounds like a problem?" asked Yang.

"He's more than a problem, but there's no way he knows I'm here, you'll see soon enough." As if to punctuate his point the door pushed open and an older man stepped into the room. Ozpin was in his usual garb, a cane in his left hand, a mug in his right. His presence was almost like a cooling breeze after the raging heat that was Goodwitch's interrogation.

"It seems tense in here." Ozpin observed taking a sip from his mug.

"Ozpin?" Goodwitch asked in confusion. She turned her sights to Alex, "You messaged him?"

"Alex informed me it was urgent, so, what's the matter?" he asked, his tone calm, yet stern.

"Goodwitch knows of Geralt." Alex bluntly put, that alone would tell Ozpin all he needed to know of the situation. Ozpin was about to take another sip, but Alex' blunt admission caused him to stop. He lowered the mug and turned to Goodwitch.

"Glynda, what have you done?" It would be hard to tell if you didn't know Ozpin, but even though his tone was calm you could sense the seriousness of his question.

"It is my job to screen any and all visitors to this academy." Goodwitch explained.

"Yes, VIP's and dignitaries, not students." The air seemed tense between Ozpin and Goodwitch; however they both spoke calmly to one another.

"Well it was a good thing I did, when were you going to tell us of this murderer that stalks Alex. Not to mention that Alex himself is a murderer!" Goodwitch had raised her voice. Ozpin stepped towards the desk, placing his mug down as he did.

"While I appreciate your devotion to the protection of Beacon, you really need to trust me on this." Ozpin calmly placed his hand on Goodwitch' shoulder, she looked as if she was about to say something but Ozpin held up his hand. "I should have told you about Alex, about Geralt, I should have told all the professors, and it was a mistake to keep you in the dark. If you want I can fill you in on all the details later in my office, if you feel the other professors should know then I will inform each of them personally." He finished. "Is that alright with you?" he spoke to Alex. Alex nodded his agreement.

Goodwitch sighed in resignation, before finally nodding.

"Erm, excuse me?" Everyone turned around to see Yang, her hand held in the air. "Yeah, erm, I actually came here to ask permission to challenge Alex to a duel, so if I could get an answer on that, that'd be great." Everyone eased up taking a step back, the tension in the air seemingly dispelled by Yang's innocent question.

"Well, what do you think Glynda?" Ozpin asked.

"Yang has proven herself to be extremely proficient in combat; the one you should be asking here is Alex." She answered. Ozpin turned to Alex.

"Then what do you say, you willing to accept the challenge?"

Alex turned to Yang with a grin, "Absolutely, Yang's head has gotten quite large as of late and I feel that someone should let some air out of it." he turned back, smiling. Yang punched the back of his arm, which only widened his grin.

"Well then." Ozpin spoke as he turned to Goodwitch: "It would appear you have some planning to do." He pointed out. Goodwitch sighed and retrieved her scroll; she flicked through it for a few seconds.

"Your duel will take place tomorrow at 10 A.M. Make sure you arrive on time." She spoke sternly. Both Alex and Yang gave a nod.

"Well with that we'll take our leave. Glynda. Ozpin." Alex spoke as he gave a nod to each of the professors. Alex moved to the door holding it open as Yang stepped out. Once they were both out and the door had closed shut, they both let out a breath they didn't know they were holding in.

"Man that was rough." Alex sighed.

"What was that all about?" Yang exclaimed.

"It's a long story."

"What about that guy who's trying to kill you?" she asked.

"Again. Long story." He repeated.

It was now late in the afternoon; Alex stared around the hallway turning back to Yang.

"So what are you gonna-" Alex trailed off, once he realized Yang wasn't paying attention and was too busy tapping on her scroll. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Sending messages." She bluntly answered.

"To who?"

"Oh, erm, everyone." She gave a smile to Alex, before returning to her screen. "This fight is gonna be big and I think everyone should be there to watch." She added.

"You mean watch you beat the guy from Foresight?" he countered, folding his arms across his chest. Yang merely smiled. Alex waved her off and started to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Yang called after him.

"To get some rest, I'll see you tomorrow." He called back.

Yang smiled to herself, tomorrow was going to be a good day.

* * *

Alex found himself in one of the locker rooms that lead to the duel ring. There was a main room for teams to get ready; however there were smaller rooms for privacy or opposite sexes to get changed. Alex paced the small locker room. On two of the opposite walls ran four lockers a piece with a bench in front of each, there was a small circular window at the far end that allowed the sunlight to bathe the room. Alex paced up and down the room, he looked to the clock hanging above the door, and it was 9:47AM. He sighed and went back to his pacing.

The night before and the hours leading to this moment had been pretty crazy. Throughout the night Alex had received dozens of messages from students asking if what Yang claimed was true, was he really going to duel one of their comrades. Even the walk to the arena was tense; countless nameless faces congratulated him or wished him luck.

"Hey good luck man you're gonna need it."

"Going up against Yang? You're either stupidly brave or bravely stupid."

"I challenged Yang once; watch out, that girls got a mean right hook."

Alex rubbed his temples in an attempt to calm his mind.

"Arras?" he spoke aloud seeing as he was alone.

"_What's up_?" he replied.

"I wanna treat this like a real fight, it might just be a duel but I'm not taking any chances, I don't doubt Yang has what it takes to best me."

"_Well with an attitude like that…"_

"Arras!" Alex reprimanded.

"_Fine, fine, treat it like life or death, you got it boss." _

There was a small knock on the open door, Alex spun around to spot a tall raven haired girl in the doorway.

"Blake?" Alex exclaimed, his voice filled with confusion, however at the same time he felt a surge of happiness to see her, though he was unsure why. Blake stepped into the room.

"Just wanted to see how you were doing?" she asked. Alex slumped onto one of the benches.

"I'm fine, but thank you for checking up on me."

Blake stepped forward and sat down next to him. "Yang has a concern." She explained. Alex looked at her with confusion, Blake merely tapped her temple.

"Ah, she's worried about Arras making an appearance. She doesn't need to worry, she challenged me to a duel and that is who she's gonna fight." He reassured.

"What does Arras think of all this?" she queried.

"_I fucking love it!"_

"He fucking loves it." Alex repeated. Blake smiled.

There was another knock on the door, Jaune smiled awkwardly.

"I don't mean to interrupt." He began, "Just wanted to make sure you hadn't gone insane." He joked.

"What do you mean?" Alex asked. Jaune stepped in standing in front of Blake and Alex.

"Well anyone who agrees to fight Yang must be insane right?" he pointed out.

"You don't think I can win?"

"I think it's gonna be close. I've seen Yang fight, I've seen you fight. I…just don't know." He finished.

Suddenly there was a huge uproar as the crowd outside started to cheer. Alex looked at the clock, 9:56AM. Yang must have stepped out into the arena, the cheering was deafening, and exactly how many people had come to spectate. Blake stood up.

"I guess that's our cue to leave, best of luck out there." Both Blake and Jaune bid their farewells and left Alex once again on his own.

He took a few seconds to prepare himself. Eyes closed he took a few deep breathes. He stood and made his way towards the arena.

"_Let's show these people what we're made of!"_

Alex was deafened by the cheers as he made his way onto the arena. The countless seats that circled the arena were now packed full of students eager to see the brawl. Behind him hanging from the wall were two large screens, one showed a picture of Alex and his current Aura level, the other showed Yang's. In front of him a couple of meters away stood the woman herself, her trademark grin plastered on her face, and off to their side stood Goodwitch. She raised her hand and the arena became silent.

"You both know the rules." She looked between the two fighters, "A friendly duel that will be called when one of you reaches critical Aura levels, at that point you will forfeit the match and your opponent is named victor. Any questions?" Both Alex and Yang said nothing, each maintaining their stare with one another. "Good. Begin when ready." And with that Goodwitch left the arena.

The tension in the air rose sharply for every second Alex and Yang held off on their attack, and like the sudden arrival of a tropical storm, they charged.

The crowd exploded in cheers as the sound of metal on metal, blade on gauntlet, rang out through the arena. Yang's punches, hard and fast. Alex's blades sharp and swift. Each gave no ground as they barraged one another in a rain of blows. Yang swung high only for Alex to dodge low, he countered with a swipe at her legs. Yang leapt back launching a volley from her gauntlets; the rounds whistled through the air, Alex leapt high, the shots exploding the ground at his feet. Alex connected his blades and launched his own volley of arrows from up high. Yang blasted the arrows out of the air with her own rounds. Alex hit the ground and charged for another attack. Once again a mad flurry of attacks beset one another.

However Yang struck home, she blocked one of Alex' strikes with one hand whilst punching Alex in the face with her free hand, Alex' face exploded in pain from the blow momentarily becoming disorientated, however a moment was all Yang needed. She spun, driving her elbow into Alex' chest, firing her gauntlets caused her to spin in the other direction and delivered a roundhouse kick to the side of Alex' head, before delivering a straight kick to his ribs. Alex was sent sailing through the air, smacking into the far wall and slumping to the ground.

The crowd went ballistic, whooping and cheering at the sight of such an attack. Alex got to his feet, shaking his head to dispel his momentary dizziness.

"Assessment." He spoke.

"_Kickboxing fighting style, more power than finesse. Punches are wide, easy to counter if you get close. She uses her gauntlet shots to enhance her punches and speed, I suggest deflections, and keep those gauntlets pointing away from you at all times. Use the flash-bang to stun her" _suggested Arras.

Alex nocked the flash-bang arrow and launched it high into the air. The arrow exploded causing the crowd to shield their eyes, screams of surprise rang out. Even Yang was stunned from the arrow. Alex quickly tossed his staff into the air, catching it like it was a spear and threw it at Yang. The weapon connected with a dazed Yang, knocking her back. Alex rushed forward, catching his weapon on the rebound and delivering a massive flurry of attacks onto an unprepared Yang. His years of training and conditioning coming into effect. The blows struck Yang across her upper torso and midriff, before Alex topped the attack off with an uppercut with his blade. Yang was sent sailing through the air, however Alex wasn't finished, he leapt high after her, and struck blow after blow onto the helpless Yang before striking her hard, sending her smashing back into the ground below.

Alex landed a few feet away, satisfied at his counter-attack.

"That outta keep her down for a while." He panted. He blinked in dis-belief as Yang rose to her feet, her yellow hair now burning a bright gold, she grinned at him as if his assault meant nothing. She didn't even look fazed. Alex cursed under his breath and readied himself as Yang rushed forward. She fired her gauntlets backwards launching herself forward delivering a sidekick to Alex' face, Alex however backfipped out of the way before blocking blow after blow from Yang. Arras' assessment was spot on; her punches were wide allowing him to step in close to her, blocking the blow before countering it. He found himself landing more and more hits on Yang as the fight went on. Deflections also came easy, blocking her punch and sending her rounds firing harmlessly into the air. Another wide punch from Yang and Alex stepped in close, he threw his head forward, his forehead connected with Yang' nose, she whelped in pain as her nose exploded, blood sprayed from it and Yang was sent reeling clutching her nose.

The crowd gasped in dis-belief, but once again, Yang merely wiped the blood away and grinned. This girl was crazy. Alex was definitely not seeing things, her hair was now burning gold and licks of flames could be seen dancing from the threads of hair.

"What is happening with her hair?" he asked, panting for air, his stamina starting to struggle.

"_Her Aura is pulsating violently; every blow you land it explodes brighter. I think she becomes more powerful for every hit you land!"_

Alex blinked in surprise, "What!? How is that even fair?" He complained.

"_I don't know but she's growing in power, you need to distract her or she will beat you. Try pissing her off, maybe she'll become blinded by rage and make mistakes." _Arras suggested

"Or she'll pummel me into the ground!" Alex countered.

"_Hey, I didn't say the plan was perfect!" _He shot back.

Never-the-less Alex had an idea; he readied himself for Yang's next attack. She charged forward, her golden hair streaming behind her as she leapt high, bringing her foot down on top of Alex' head, he rolled to the side blocking an uppercut as he did. Once again they exploded in barrages, however Alex noticed he was now more on the defensive, Yang was much quicker than before and her attacks were more varied causing Alex to disengage a lot rather than run the risk of being bested. Luckily his window of opportunity presented itself in the form of a wide right hook from Yang.

Alex stepped forward, throwing his blades down causing them to stab into the ground; he closed the gap between them, blocking her punch with his body. Alex wrapped his arm around hers locking it straight, then with his right arm he grabbed a hold of the back of her head and pulled her face towards his.

Their lips smacked together in an embrace and the crowd fell hauntingly silent, even Arras was lost for words. Alex lost himself in the kiss, Yang's lips tasted sweet and his body urged for more. For the briefest of moments Alex could swear he felt Yang's lips moving, returning the kiss. Sadly reality hit back hard, and Yang shoved Alex back.

"What the hell!?" she screamed, "What was that all about!?" she demanded.

Alex however continued to step back returning to his weapons. He looked her in the eye; a small grin began to tug at his lips. He held up his right hand. Held between his thumb and index finger was a single, long thread of golden hair.

Yang's body stiffened, her eyes glued to the strand of hair he held. Alex watched in confusion as Yang slowly blinked, her beautiful lilac eyes turning to a deep red.

"_Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh shit, oh fuck!" _Arras stammered

"What is it!?" Alex asked aloud.

"_Her Aura is exploding within her; I think pulling her hair was a really bad idea!"_ Arras criticized.

"You told me to piss her off!?" Alex shouted back.

"_Yeah well it didn't fucking work did it! Seriously, her Aura is burning hotter than the sun in the middle of July!" _

"Alright, recommendations?" he asked.

"_Use your semblance!" _he demanded, more than suggested.

"My semblance only heals me!" he pointed out.

"_Yeah, and you're gonna need it. Here she comes!"_ he yelled.

Alex watched as Yang's hair began to burn brighter and brighter, the orange flames licking off her body. She slammed her fists together; her hair became wreathed in flames. They leapt from her body as her fists caused a shock-wave. Orange flames danced all around her.

"Urgh, fuck this!" Alex grabbed a hold of his blades, and drew on his semblance. He slammed his foot into the ground. Green fire consumed his body almost mimicking Yang's flames. The green fire danced around Alex, weaving themselves between his limbs.

Alex and Yang couldn't tell, but every student watching were on their feet trying to get a better view of the spectacle. They watched as Alex and Yang charged at each other, their colored flames dancing behind them. Yang fired her gauntlets behind her, launching herself faster toward Alex, and gauntlet clashed with blade.

Yang's fist exploded in a flurry of powerful punches, Alex merely trying his best to keep the blows from connecting with his body. Alex gave up on blocking entirely; Yang's punches were so forceful that a straight block did nothing to stop her blow from reaching its target. Alex began deflecting the punches, pushing them away, it still wasn't perfect, and every now and then one of her attacks would break through his defense. A punch connected with his shoulder and it screamed in pain, threatening to drop the blade in his hand, however his semblance quenched the pain and healed any damage allowing him to continue. Their flames danced with each other, almost beauty in sight as emerald and golden flames wrapped themselves around one another, and at the heart of the storm, chaos ensued between the two warriors.

Alex spun his blades in an attempt to connect with her head, Yang ducked low bringing her fist upwards into Alex' chin. Alex backfipped clear only to be beset by blow after blow from Yang. She was far too fast now. He connected his blades into the staff and lunged it forward towards her midriff, Yang punched the blade downwards and Alex used the momentum to pole-vault himself, launching a kick at her head. Again, Yang dodged the blow by quickly side-stepping it. Alex now found himself in the unfortunate position with his back to Yang. Before he even had a chance to move, she delivered a swift kick to the back of his leg causing him to drop to one knee. Yang leapt over him, grabbing his head as she did and slamming his face into the ground. Alex' head ignited in pain, his semblance trying to heal, but it was too late. Yang grabbed the back of his jacket and threw him into the air, she drove punch after punch into his torso, preventing his body from hitting the ground, finishing the combo with a straight uppercut to his chin, firing her gauntlets as she did to maximize the damage. Alex' entire body screamed in agony, his semblance dying away as his Aura reached critical levels.

Alex' body sailed through the air, everyone watched in stunned silence. Yang slammed her fists together once again, this time the color from her surrounding seemed to wash away, and she shot forward, launching every remaining round in her gauntlets increasing her speed tenfold. Her blow connected with Alex before he had even hit the ground. His body now burned all over, every inch was wreathed in pain as he felt the blow send him screaming towards the arena wall. His back felt like it shattered as body met concrete, but he didn't stop. The wall gave way and Alex felt his body tumbling along the ground, he bounced over and over again finally skidding to a halt.

He writhed in agony, short, sharp breathes making their way into his lungs, anymore and his ribs would scream in pain. He tried to gather his surroundings, his eyes burned from the morning sun. Was he outside? He could hear the chatter of dozens of students.

"Where did he come from?"

"Did he just explode out from the building?"

"Isn't that the guy who was supposed to be fighting Yang?"

"Guess that explains what happened."

He was definitely outside; Yang's punch must have sent him through the wall and out into the campus.

"_Holy-fucking-shit, that girl is OP."_ Arras chimed in, _"She fucking rinsed you out."_ He mocked. Alex could only groan from the pain, clutching his ribs as he rolled on the ground. He finally managed to get his eyes open, he stared up at the blue sky, the pain slowly receding but he knew why. Black tendrils were beginning to snake into his vision, he was about to lose consciousness.

"_Use the last of your semblance to heal the body!" _Arras pleaded.

"What's the point?" Alex thought to himself.

"_I'll take over." _Arras put bluntly. "_Heal the body and I'll win this fight for us!"_

Alex' eyes were beginning to close, "Don't hurt her."

"_Erm, I don't think you know what a duel means_." Arras teased.

"You know what I mean."

"_Don't worry Alex, I won't harm a hair on her pretty little head, because you did that, and it did not work out well for you." _He mocked.

Alex fought against his body's urges and charged his semblance. He could feel small amounts of it ease their way from his body, desperately trying to heal his body. However it was too late for Alex' mind, the black tendrils in his vision grew larger and larger until they blocked his vision, and with that Alex lost consciousness.

Arras opened his eyes.

Yang was panting hard, the golden flames dying away and her red eyes returning to their lilac origins. She was still stood in her final attack; her legs set wide apart, her arm out straight where she had landed the final blow on Alex. She stared at the hole in the wall, dust and rubble had blocked the view outside. Everyone was stunned in silence; it was broken by the sound of heels on the floor. Goodwitch stepped into the middle of the arena.

"With Alex' Aura at critical levels, I declare Yang Xiao Long the victor!" she announced.

The crowd hit deafening heights as everyone erupted into cheers and whistles. Students jumped up and down, throwing their fists into the air or began chanting Yang's name. Yang jumped for joy, pumping her arms into the air.

"Undefeated!" she bellowed at the top of her lungs, "Un. De. Feated!"

"I knew you could do it sis!" yelled Ruby from up high on the rafters, she marveled at everyone cheering for her big sister. Even Weiss was grinning in delight, applauding Yang. She turned to Blake, who was the only person not cheering.

"What is it Blake?" Ruby asked in confusion.

"It's not over yet." She spoke nonchalantly.

"What do you mean?" Ruby exclaimed, she waved her hands around gesturing to the crowd, "Alex was beat, Yang won!" she explained.

"Alex was beat." Blake pointed out. Ruby blinked in confusion. Blake's words slowly sank in.

"Alex was beat." The young girl repeated, "But Arras….?" Blake merely nodded. The cheers began to die down as people started to mumble between themselves, people began pointing at the large screen. Alex' aura was now showing that it was back in the green. Students began looking confused, Yang caught on turning to the screen hanging up behind her. She blinked for a few moments not sure what she was seeing, even Goodwitch looked confused. The professor was furiously tapping at her scroll.

"There must be a glitch with the system." She tried to convince herself.

A solitary clap rang out through the arena, everyone turned their attention to the hole in the wall, a silhouette was now visible behind the dust that obscured their view. Everyone stared in dis-belief as 'Alex' stepped back into the arena. He strode around Yang continuing to clap.

"Bravo!" Arras exclaimed, "Bravo!" he began kissing the tips of his fingers, "Mwah, mwah, simply astounding! C'mon ladies and gentlemen, let's give a hand to Yang Xiao Long!" he stopped a meter in front of Yang, glaring at her, "The woman who beat Alex."

Yang glared back, his burning red eyes seemed to make her uneasy, he looked like a demon.

"I was worried you'd show up." She confessed.

"In Alex' defense he actually didn't plan on this, but you forced his hand, can't have you winning now can we!" his smug grin never wavered, and it was beginning to piss Yang off.

"This isn't fair, two on one, I'm beat from Alex and now you expect me to fight you?" she complained.

"Alex was handicapped in his fight, it's only fair."

"Fuck off!" Yang snapped, "You're a different Aura, a different semblance!" she pointed out.

"Yes, but since Alex and I became one, we have trained together ever since. Attacks, techniques even manoeuvres were all planned on us working together. Take one of us away and the other is left handicapped in their abilities. Take your gauntlets for example, you've trained to use two of them, based your fighting style around two of them, now imagine someone took one away, you'd still be good, but not quite you." He explained.

Yang frowned, she wasn't pleased that the fight wasn't over, but what Arras said held some weight. What if Alex was at a disadvantage right from the get go? Yang shook her head, even if some people would accept the win and walk away Yang wasn't like that, she'd never accept a half-victory.

"Alright, beating Alex wasn't too hard, you should be no different." Yang held her arms at sides, the gauntlets pulled back ejecting the empty casings, reaching behind her back she pulled out two bandoleers which she tossed into the air catching them in her gauntlets which closed over them. Arras withdrew his blades, his grin widening.

Blake watched as Arras readied himself.

"I can't believe the fight is still going on!" Ruby exclaimed, the students watched in silence, not entirely sure what was happening.

"She's going to lose." Blake pointed out.

"What? How do you know?" asked Ruby. Blake looked away for a moment.

"I've seen Arras fight."

"And just how have you seen him fight?" demanded Weiss.

"I can't tell you, just know that Arras is fast, too fast, and with Yang exhausted from her fight with Alex she won't hold out long." Explained Blake.

"Then she needs to forfeit, accept her victory over Alex and be done with this!" Weiss' tone was filled with agitation.

"Do you really think Yang will forfeit the duel?" asked Blake. Ruby covered her eyes with her hands.

"Oh, I can't watch!"

Yang charged forward, Arras merely waited for her to close the gap. Despite having fought Alex, Yang still held incredible power and speed, but Arras was determined and he was taking no chances with the heavyweight blonde. They both erupted in a flurry of mad blows as the fight began its second round, Yang swung blow for blow, Arras choosing to focus on deflecting her attacks or dodging them entirely. Yang leapt forward bring a heel down on his head, Arras leapt out the way but waited for Yang to come to him before resuming his defensive posture. With each blow blocked or attack dodged Yang became more and more furious.

"Why won't you hold still!?" she bellowed at Arras as he rolled clear of her umpteenth attack. Arras merely grinned; Yang this time strode over to Arras, a clear left foot stride meant she was throwing a right hook. Arras didn't flinch; her right hook came screaming towards his head only for Arras to grab it out of the air in the blink of an eye. Yang blinked in dis-belief for a few moment, not only did he grab her fist but he also sheathed his weapons in a fraction of a second. Arras pulled Yang forward by her hand, close-lining her as she went past. Yang immediately got to her feet and turned to face Arras only to find he was no-where to be seen. A hard blow connected with her back and she was sent sprawling forward, as she twisted herself around Arras drove the hilt of his blade into her chin, before slashing her across her midriff, her Aura flashed as it protected her body from the blade. Arras backfipped clear, kicking Yang in the chin as he did. Yang landed on the floor hard. Arras watched as she didn't move for a few moments.

"Down alrea-" Arras was cut off as Yang gingerly got back to her feet. The students began cheering, their fellow huntsman not down yet. Yang grinned back.

"Is that it? Seriously, the Ice Queen hits harder than you." Yang mocked.

"_Hey!"_

Arras frowned, clearly putting her down was gonna take more effort. This time Arras charged first, before they connected Arras leapt high launching a fire tipped arrow at Yang, Yang rolled away but was still glanced from the explosion. Arras burst through the flames, slashing at the blonde, Yang was still formidable. She punched one of the blades deflecting it away before delivering a shattering blow to his shoulder; Arras stumbled back as Yang continued her advance. Arras leapt back, putting some distance between them, he repeated Alex' move of throwing his staff like a spear, Yang turned her body as the weapon sailed passed, but blinked in confusion as Arras was gone. He appeared behind her catching his weapon and swept Yang's legs out from under her, he detached the staff in one smooth motion before slamming both blades into her ribs, smashing her into the ground.

Yang pulled herself onto all fours only to have Arras drive his foot into her stomach causing her to roll away. Yang refused to stay down getting back to her feet. She was panting heavily:

"So when are you gonna start fighting like a man? C'mon, give me your best shot!" she mocked.

"My best shot!?" Arras screamed. He slammed the hilts of the blades together, his semblance began to burn up within him and his body became shrouded in a white glow. A low humming noise could be heard emanating from Arras.

"I'll show you what I'm capable of." He whispered to himself.

The humming grew louder and louder until it deafened the arena. Arras bolted forward, his speed increasing with every step until he moved so fast it was near impossible to see him. He blitzed past Yang slashing her as he did, Yang's reflexes too slow to react in time. He darted back, slashing her again, Yang was helpless as Arras launched the barrage of blows against her, he would seemingly teleport all around her slashing at her again and again, hundreds of blows rained down on Yang in mere seconds. Yang screamed as her body was pulled in every direction, the blows tearing down her Aura, she felt herself get knocked off her feet, but she still couldn't see Arras, he moved as a blur. The students watched helplessly as Yang was battered around like a rag-doll. He cracked her from below sending her into the air before warping after her; the blows continued mid-air, as Arras blinked all around her, blow after blow, attack after attack, besieged Yang's body, until Arras finally smashed Yang's ribs with his blades sending the girl into the ground. The force caused a small crater in the ground as Yang smashed into the concrete. Arras landed a few meters away, panting heavily; he stared at the broken girl. He threw his weapons onto the ground and turned to the screens. Yang's Aura was in the red while his was just below half.

All of Alex and most of Arras. That is what it took to beat Yang. That is what it took to-

"No!" Arras spoke in dis-belief.

Yang was getting to her feet. She wavered slightly as she stood up, her face was stained with blood and she was clutching her left arm. She spat blood out onto the floor.

"That it?" she mumbled, trying to keep herself on her feet.

"Why won't you just fucking stay down!" Arras bellowed as he marched over to Yang. Yang gave a ham-fisted attempt at a right hook. Arras easily grabbed a hold of the arm, driving his knee into her stomach and then again into her face before throwing her across the floor. Yet again Yang began getting to her feet.

"For fuck sake!" Arras panted as he stormed over, he slammed his foot into her ribs as she tried to get up. Yang was sent skidding across the floor. Again, (Yes, AGAIN) Yang tried to get to her feet.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Arras complained in exasperation. He slammed his foot into her ribs again; this time as she was sent into the air Arras immediately punched the back of her head slamming it into the ground.

He stood over her panting hard. He watched and waited, and, finally, Yang didn't get back up. Arras collapsed to his knees.

"It's over." He spoke, not quite believing it himself. "And you!" he bellowed at the unconscious Yang, "Why are you so fucking tough and stubborn. My god!"

The arena was in a stunned silence. Goodwitch slowly made her way onto the arena.

"It would appear…in a drastic turn of events…that Mr Cross is the victor of the duel." She announced. There were no cheers, no celebrations, just a stunned silence. Students dressed in all white ran out onto the arena, combat medics, they attended to the broken Yang, some made their way too Arras, but he merely waved them off, refusing their aid.

"_So what happened?" _Alex asked, regaining consciousness.

"Ah look who's awake; you missed the fight, quite the spectacle." Arras looked at Yang.

_"What did you do to her!?"_ Alex barked.

"Relax; your girlfriend is fine, just out of it. Look at what it took." Arras turned to the board, so Alex could see his Aura levels. Alex let out a low whistle.

"_She really took it out of you"_

"I had to use fucking Tempest Break!" Arras complained.

"_Seriously? That bad?"_

"That's not the worst part, she got back up after it!" he pointed out. Alex was speechless. "Yeah, that's what I was like. Dumb bitch!"

Alex laughed, _"Sounds like you had fun."_

Arras got to his feet and stumbled out of the arena, leaving the chaos behind. He barged into the locker room, the same one he was in before all this started, and collapsed onto the bench, sprawling out along it, his arms and legs hanging off the sides.

"I'm out, I'm done, you can have the body back." Arras receded into the back of the mind, his burning red eyes returned to their deep silver as Alex took over. Alex let out a long and painful groan as the aches and pains of the body overwhelmed him.

"You really weren't lying about that fight." Alex grunted as he lay on his back, staring at the ceiling.

"_I fucking told you. That bitch is crazy!"_ Arras exclaimed.

"On that we can agree on." Alex was jolted as he heard a knock on the open door, he craned his neck to see who it was, his body complained as he did. Stood in the doorway was a tall slender girl, her slim frame was covered in the all-white uniform of the combat medics. She had long wavy blue hair that rested just passed her shoulder; she had soft delicate features and vibrant hazel eyes.

"_I change my mind I want control!" _Arras demanded.

"No, no, you don't want control, you're done remember." Alex thought to himself, with an air of smugness in his tone.

"_No, I was joking, please Alex, I'll love you forever!"_ he pleaded. Alex smiled to himself.

"Can I help you?" he asked the girl.

"I know you refused medical before, but I watched that fight, no-one could walk away from that and not need help." The girl explained.

"Thank you for your concern, but I'm alright, seriously." He reassured.

"You got blasted through a wall, I don't care how strong you are, you need help!" The girl spoke sternly; she marched over next to him. Alex looked deep into her hazel eyes, she held confidence in them.

"Alright." Alex relented, "I suppose it couldn't hurt." The young girl smiled and knelt down next to him. She rubbed her hands holding them out over his body, a soft golden glow built up within them. Alex groaned in pleasure as the aches and pains instantly washed away.

"I'm gonna take that as a compliment." The girl smiled. Alex could feel his muscles loosening, the tension that had built up during the fight easing away leaving nothing but pleasure.

"What's your name?" Alex asked between moans of pleasure. The girl smiled.

"Miranda. Miranda Majorelle."

"It's a pleasure to meet you Miranda. Not to sound too smug but I assume you already know who I am?" The girl nodded.

"It's hard not to know who you are; you've been making splashes around here." She explained

"_I'd like to make splashes in you."_ added Arras.

"Did anyone ever tell you, you're an exceptional healer?" Alex complimented. Miranda smiled.

"I have heard that I have a gift." She mused. Alex gently took a hold of the girls' wrist.

"Thank you for the help, I think I got it from here." Alex could feel his Aura picking back up, he was satisfied that he could use his semblance to speed up the healing process. He charged it up and let the emerald flames lick at his body. Miranda stared in awe as the flames wrapped themselves around his limbs. She gingerly reached forward, the flames licked at her hands, dancing around her fingers. She smiled to herself.

"It feels warm but it doesn't burn." She pointed out. They heard someone clearing their throat. Miranda jumped back.

"Mr Ozpin? I'm surprised to see you here." The young girl exclaimed.

"Relax Miss Majorelle; I just came to check up on Alex." Ozpin assured.

"Right, I'll leave you two in private." With that the blue haired girl hurried out of the room. Ozpin moved over to the opposite bench and sat down.

"_Did we just get cock-blocked by Ozpin?"_

"Quite the event, if I do say so myself." Ozpin began. "I also just spoke with Yang."

"Is she okay?" Alex asked out of concern.

Ozpin smiled, "She's awake and well on her way to a full recovery, no permanent damage I'm pleased to say."

"She mad at me?" Alex was curious to know how Yang took the defeat.

"Pleased actually." Ozpin informed him. Alex craned his head to the side, staring at Ozpin.

"Pleased?" he asked in confusion.

"It would seem that Yang is happy with her defeat. A loss has showed her that no matter how capable she thinks she is, there is always someone better than you. She has renewed vigor for training. The loss has also lowered her ranking and she will now be scheduled for future duels, an outcome that she is pleased with." He finished. Alex turned his head back, it would seem he got lucky. He was worried that Yang would take the loss hard, and he was worried that it would ruin their friendship. If anything it might be stronger.

"I need to go see her." Alex sat up as he spoke.

"Before you do, I have a question." Ozpin explained. Alex turned to the professor. "I was curious how you won the fight, after Yang…removed you from the premises, you returned at full strength, a remarkable feat if I do say so myself."

"You want to know how I beat Yang?"

"You didn't beat Yang." Ozpin pointed out, heavily emphasizing on the word 'You'. Alex sighed, he knew, of course he knows, it's Ozpin.

"Do I get to explain?" Alex asked. Ozpin took a sip from his mug.

"As long as it's the truth this time." Ozpin informed. Once again Alex sighed, _screw it, _he thought, go for broke.

"The blackouts I used to have were caused by another soul in my body, after my training with the Rinetian warriors, I learned to communicate with him, his name is Arras, and we work together now. We're a team." He finished explaining, here's hoping Ozpin takes it well. Ozpin stared in silence for a moment.

"A curious condition, do you know how it came to pass?" he asked. So far so good.

"Trauma, when I witnessed my parent's death, coupled with my near death experience immediately after. They believe it caused my soul to rip in two. Arras is the other half." It felt strange to confess truths that Alex himself avoided, to admit that you are only one half of your whole being felt strange.

"Is it possible to repair yourself, to become whole?" Ozpin tone was calm, his voice filled with concern. It was something that Alex loved about Ozpin, he showed great concern for Alex and his own students, it's what made him such a great headmaster.

"It's possible, some have repaired, other's though went mad, other's minds simply stopped working. I guess I'm unique." Alex pointed out.

"How so?" the professor asked.

"Most halves share the same Aura and Semblance, the Rinetian's believe that me and Arras healed, but not to become whole, to become more defined. We grew into two complete souls, each with our own Aura and semblance. That is how I beat Yang, once she bested me, Arras took over and beat her." There it was, the truth. Ozpin sat straight, taking another sip from his mug.

"Why not tell me this when you first arrived, why the deceit?" Ozpin queried.

"To be honest, I was afraid you'd cast me out once you learned that I actually didn't have control of my other half, that he was in fact his own being. I mean, he can't take control until I let him, but once I do I can't get back control until he lets me. I was afraid that with so much uncertainty you'd choose to send me back without giving me a chance." Alex confessed.

"Alex," Ozpin placed a hand on the young man's shoulder, "The truth is all I ask for, if you just explain, I'm sure we could come to an understanding." Ozpin reassured. Alex sighed for the umpteenth time.

"I should really check on Yang." Alex rose to his feet and made his way to the door. "Thank you." He spoke turning back to Ozpin, "For letting me visit." The professor smiled back at him.

"Anything for family."

* * *

**I hope you guys enjoy the extra long read, this may or may not turn into a thing.  
Also, feedback on the fight would be appreciated, was it good, bad, plausible etc, etc.**

**Anyway thank you for reading my story and thank you to those that have left me reviews, seeing people enjoy this little story of mine makes me all warm and fuzzy inside. Alright, alright, enough crap, get outta here and enjoy the rest of your day :)**


	9. Revalations

**03/02/2015: I find it almost embarrassing that it would take the passing of someone who inspires me to give me the motivation to write. However it did get me thinking, we are all here because of Monty. Those who write are inspired by the universe that Monty created that we wanted to add our own flavour to it and those who read want to see through new windows into this universe, but no matter what, we are here because of what Monty envisioned. Monty is not truly gone, he lives in our hearts and our minds and so long as we carry his memory and his inspiration, he will never be forgotten.**

**"This world is unforgiving, even brilliant lights will cease to burn..."**

**09/02/2015: Roosterteeth asked that in memory of Monty Oum we give into our imaginations, because if he was alive it's what he would be doing. So a part of this chapter is me just doing that. I really enjoy writing these and I hope you enjoy reading it :)**

**Chapter 9: Revelations**

"_It was just fine, we lived in peace, looked to a happy ending._

_The days were bright; they shined like gold, every step ascending."_

Alex drew a deep breath before releasing it into the gentle breeze, a smile of pure content drawn across his lips and the warm afternoon sun beat down on his face. Winter was doing its best to push autumn out the way but the days were still warm, benefits of living near the equator. Alex was enjoying his spare time with team RWBY, as it turns out every few days Ruby has her team spend an hour or so relaxing outside, it was her way of letting them recharge their batteries between studies.

"_Our dreams came true, our path was clear, the moon watched safely from above,_

_But every smile is not the same and every heart's not filled with…"_

It had been three days since the duel, and still it was the most talked about subject in Beacon. Yang recovered quickly and was released from the infirmary the next day. Alex was glad to hear that his victory hadn't cost him their friendship. He opened his eyes squinting as they adjusted to the blinding light. Alex and team RWBY were sat on the far side of the beacon campus; there Ruby had picked a favourite spot for the team. A small patch of trees hugged the outskirts and it was there that the five of them enjoyed the peace and quiet. Alex made a mental note to do the same for his team when he returned to Foresight, even from someone so young he could still learn a thing or two about being a team leader from Ruby.

"…_love for mankind, look around it's getting very hard to find._

_Not every open wound is simply healed by time."_

Alex frowned at the low hanging afternoon sun; the shelter of the trees did nothing to obscure its rays from assaulting his eyes. The clouds were burned a bright orange and the air was still warm despite the time of day. He stared at the other girls; Blake hid herself by a nearby tree to his left, sat on the opposite side in the shade as to read her book unobstructed. Their leader Ruby had taken up refuge by Alex hiding in his shadow, she tapped away at her scroll before gesturing to Alex to take the headphones off.

"So? What did you think?" she asked enthusiastically. Alex smiled at her.

"Sounds good so far, what's it called?"

"'_Die' _it's by Jeff Williams, I seriously love his stuff, wanna listen to another one?" earlier in the day Alex had confessed to the young girl that he never really listened to music. It wasn't that he hated it, more that he never found the time. Ruby was shocked to say the least. Now she was schooling him in the arts, she plopped him down by the tree, shoved her headphones onto his head and played any and every song on her scroll. Alex couldn't help but smile at the young leader, she showed boundless enthusiasm, clearly music meant a lot to her and she took pride in showing off her favourite songs. It wasn't all bad for Alex either, he genuinely found himself enjoying most of the tracks and made a mental note to buy some the next chance he got.

"Another time perhaps, send me the names of the one's I listened to, and maybe some others you recommend, I'm gonna put them on my scroll when I get the chance." He answered the young girl.

"No need!" the girl beamed, "Give me your scroll and I'll just transfer them over." She held out her hand, Alex removed his scroll from his wrist and handed it over. Ruby got to work, producing a small cable from a bag she linked the two devices and began transferring the files. Alex turned his attention to the two remaining members. Yang was sat out a few meters in front laying in the grass, her long golden locks sprawling out in every direction. She wore nothing but a pair of black shorts and a yellow bikini top, her logo embroidered onto the right breast. He tried not to stare at her too long. He however turned a puzzling stare to Weiss, the pale skinned girl was a little more clothed than Yang, a flowing white skirt that came to just above her knees and a white crop top with two straps that crossed at the front, over her shoulders and then crossed again at her back. She lay on the grass propping herself up on her elbows, her face pointed towards the sky, trying to absorb as much of the dying rays as she could.

"Not to cause offense but, what are you doing Weiss?" he queried the heiress.

"What do you mean?" she answered without looking at him.

"It's just that, well, your complexion is very pale, I don't think you're gonna tan." He pointed out hesitantly.

"I'm not trying to tan!" she shot back; her harsh icy tone began to pierce in her voice.

"Then what exactly are you doing?" he countered.

"From what I heard you're smart at figuring people out, take a guess!" her voice was becoming irate.

_What did she mean by that last comment_? Alex stared at the Ice Queen with a look of confusion. Unseen in the shadows Blake's ears twitched frantically.

"_Be quiet Weiss, I knew I should have never told you about me and Arras!" _Blake bitterly thought to herself. A few days ago Blake was forced to admit to Weiss of her extracurricular activities with Arras. She was confronted as to how she knew of Arras's fighting style and, making her promise not to tell anyone else, confided in her.

"_I know what she's doing." _admitted Arras.

"You gonna enlighten me?" Alex spoke internally.

"_Let me answer it myself and you can know."_

"You…want to take control? Pass!" Alex bluntly put, shutting down any ideas Arras may have had.

"_C'mon Alex, you know I'm not gonna do anything stupid, I just wanna put that smug girl in her place." _Alex could tell his plea was genuine, and besides Arras was fair in his fight with Yang. He may have had trouble seeing eye to eye with his counterpart, but Arras had never betrayed his word.

"You get one chance, guess right then give me back control, deal?" he offered his other side.

"_Deal!" _Arras answered a little too enthusiastically. Alex relaxed and his deep silver eyes turned to a blood red.

"You're merely enjoying the sun, you know you can't tan but where you lived you never got much burning rays like you do nearer the equator." Arras answered smugly, his voice layered with confidence. Weiss blinked in surprise and turned to Alex, her eyes widened in shock.

"Arras!" Weiss yelled jumping to her feet. Everyone spun their heads, each with a look of surprise.

"Relax will ya, just taking a guess at what you're doing." Arras was grinning at everyone's awkwardness; none of them knew how to react. Well, everyone apart from Yang who calmly got to her feet.

"Look everyone, Arras making an unwanted appearance. It's just like the duel all over again." She mocked. Arras jumped to his feet, both Yang and Arras butted heads.

"You got something to say bimbo?!" Arras snapped.

"Yeah, stop popping up where no-one wants you, freak!" she snarled back.

"You're just pissy 'cause I beat you!"

"Enough!" Yelled Weiss prying the two apart. "Stop acting like a pair of children!"

"She started it!" shot Arras.

"She started it." Yang repeated in a mocking tone.

"Seriously, enough! Bring Alex back!" she demanded. Arras sighed before stepping back; he blinked for a moment, the red burned away returning to their silver origins. Alex looked around at the four girls.

"Sorry about that, he was only supposed to take a guess at your riddle not start a fight." Alex rubbed the back of his head whilst giving them a sheepish grin.

"He's forgiven seeing as it was Yang who picked the fight." The white haired girl shot daggers at Yang, who just shrugged.

"_She's enjoying the sun." _ Arras pointed out.

"Arras says you're enjoying the sun because you grew up in Atlas where the climate is a lot colder up north. You never got to sunbathe, that's why you're sunbathing now." Alex answered on behalf of Arras. The girls turned to Weiss who gave a slow nod.

"Yeah, he's right." She admitted.

"You've never sunbathed?" queried Ruby who had moved over next to the pale girl. "That is so sad!" exclaimed the young leader as she threw her arms around Weiss.

"What are you doing!" screamed Weiss, "Let go of me you dolt!" she demanded.

"Aww poor little Weiss-y." purred Yang as she gripped both Ruby and Weiss in a bear like hug.

"Argh put me down this instant!"

Blake had moved over by Alex's side and the two chuckled at the spectacle in front of them. Yang caught them in the corner of her eye, she released Weiss, though Ruby still refused, and prowled over towards Blake.

"What you laughing at there, kitty? You want some lovin'?" Yang slowly moved forward, like a panther stalking its prey. Blake dropped her book and threw up her hands defensively.

"Don't you dare Yang, don't you dare!" she warned, though it seemed more like begging. Yang dashed forward, Blake, who let out the cutest squeal of fear, dashed backwards. However, Alex felt Yang's crushing arms wrap around him, he grunted as the air was squeezed from his lungs and kicked his legs helplessly as he was raised off the ground.

"_It's a trap!" _Yelled Arras unhelpfully, as it was clearly too late.

"You were my prey all along." Yang beamed, crushing Alex that little bit tighter. His head began to swirl as blood rushed to his head, he was sure at any moment his head would pop off like the cork from a bottle of wine.

"Urgh….wha….why?!" was all Alex was able to mutter. Blake, who now realised she wasn't the target of Yang's brutishness, had returned to their side laughing at the turn of events. Meanwhile Weiss had freed herself from the clutches of Ruby and now both watched the theatrics.

"This is your punishment for that kiss, remember?" she asked knowingly, clearly Alex wouldn't have forgotten about such a thing.

"Tha…I thought…urgh…that punching me through…the wall was my punishment?" Alex grunted in pain, unbeknownst to the girls Alex was forced to use his semblance to keep his ribs from crushing to dust. He couldn't tell if the sheer force of Yang's embrace was due to her genuine anger at the kiss or whether she knew Alex could cope with such pressure, either way, he was in serious pain and needed to escape, and quickly.

"Nope, that was your punishment for pulling my hair." She informed the dying man.

"It wasn't even a kiss…argh…it was more…of a peck…or a lip smack…OK…maybe it was a kiss…" Alex's face began to turn to a light shade of blue, left was no choice Alex made his bid from freedom. He threw his head forward, and once again his lips smacked against Yang's. She immediately recoiled dropping Alex to the floor.

"Are you serious, I'm punishing you for kissing me and you do it again?" Yang blurted out. Alex wasn't paying attention; the young man was wheezing heavily and was drinking in as much air as his body needed.

"It does seem like Alex has a death wish." Blake pointed out nonchalantly.

"Can you two keep your hands off each other for two seconds; the vulgarity is getting a little too much." Weiss complained. The Ice queen was referring to Yang's and Alex's new friendship, ever since the duel the two had become closer and a new level of play fighting had emerged. It would usually happen a couple times a day, mostly over something silly like stealing food off each other's plate or getting in each other's way.

"Ooooh, they luuuurve each other." Teased the young leader in a childish tone.

"What! No we don't! And Weiss you're just jealous 'cause you can't get a guy!" Yang shot aggressively; things were starting to get heated.

"What!? What has that got to do with anything?" The heiress snapped.

"Just sayin, why would anyone want you when they can have this?" she asked rhetorically while gesturing to her body, she stood straight while emphasizing her breasts by pushing them out.

"You mean why have someone sophisticated and classy when they can have a tramp?!" A hushed stillness hung in the air; Alex stared wide eyed at Weiss, that comment was sure to get a punch from Yang. Should he intervene? Was anyone gonna say something?

"I should be pissed at you, but, I have to admit, that was a pretty brutal put down." Yang complemented out of the blue.

"Well what can I say, your brutish ways are rubbing off on me." Weiss affirmed. Alex blinked in dis-belief. _I kiss Yang and I get crushed, Weiss insults her and gets a compliment! _Alex complained as if to a hidden entity.

"_They're a team Alex, they have trust you just don't have with them. Think of AZRA, they can say shit to you that no-one else would get away with" _Arras helpfully pointed out.

Blake stretched and let out a long drawn out yawn, "I don't know about you guys but…" she turned to Alex, "…I can't wait for bed." Alex nodded in agreement but tried to hide a rush of excitement that flooded his veins. _What is happening to me?_ Catching Blake's Yawn, Ruby began to yawn too.

"Not so fast, no-one is going to bed until they finish Professor Port's assignment. I know you two haven't finished it yet!" she snapped at the sisters. Both Ruby and Yang groaned in frustration.

"I only have to add my references then that's me." Blake explained, gaining a smile from Weiss.

"We have it done, you two have no excuse." Weiss added to the two downtrodden sisters. Alex smiled, stretched his arms and folded his hands behind his head.

"And I have all the free time in the world, sucks to be you." He mocked, Yang threw a soft punch at Alex's stomach causing him to splutter and keel over, but he grinned. "Jealous Yang? Have fun studying while I kick back and relax!"

"You know as friends aren't you supposed to support me during this difficult time?" Yang purred, attempting to guilt trip Alex.

"Clearly the only support you need is a sports bra!" Alex mocked through his grin.

"Oh that is it!" Yang barked as she made a grab for Alex, he ducked the snatch and quickly darted away as Yang chased him across the campus.

"Get back here Yang! Don't think this means you're getting out of the assignment!" Weiss screamed. Blake watched silently as Alex continued to evade capture.

_I hope he got the message._

* * *

Arras impatiently moved through the darkened halls of Beacon. He grunted in anger, Alex took far longer to fall asleep than he anticipated and the seconds until he could see Blake seemed to drag on forever. Though, despite being in a rush he still stalked the halls with a covertness that few could match. He couldn't risk someone spotting him this late at night, if they were to question Alex the next day his secret would be out, and whilst Alex couldn't do much himself to prevent Arras from taking over as he slept he didn't want to give Alex any more reason to distrust him. Letting him take over willingly during the day to answer Weiss' riddle was a bigger deal than most realised and it clearly showed that Alex was beginning to trust him, something Arras wanted more than anything.

He quietly crossed a hallway, checking the corners as he did and keeping an ear out for the faintest of noises. Soon he reach the main door, his hand gripped the handle but shook in anticipation. Beyond this door waited his friend, his first real friend. Blake was waiting to see him, _him._ Not Alex or anyone else, ever since their first meeting he was eager for another. He closed his eyes and drew a silent breath. _Don't mess this up._

He turned the handle and stepped out into the main courtyard. Another cloudless night, another barren courtyard, another full moon. He stared across the open space, moonlight branded everything with its dark hue and grayish light and a chill breeze stung against his bare skin. The area was beautiful and tranquil, yet Arras's eyes were transfixed on a figure at the heart of the courtyard. Her tall slender figure, her long raven hair blowing in the breeze, her back was turned to him but he could picture her face, soft features and amber eyes. Though what caught Arras's attention the most was the top of her head. Where there was once a black bow was now a set of violet cat ears that twitched ever so slightly.

_Her bow, she's not wearing it. Why? What does that mean?_

"I thought I told you it was rude to stare." Came her gentle voice, it was quiet yet stern. Arras hesitated momentarily. _What's wrong with you, moron, say something! _Arras moved over to Blake who had turned to face him, he stopped just inches away from her, his height only slightly outdoing hers and he stared down into her eyes. _Focus._

"Checking your outfit again, didn't I tell you it was impractical?" He repeated his advice from their first encounter.

"And I told you I need light clothing for minimum noise and maximum speed." She countered confidently.

"You know winter is coming, that outfit won't hold up against the freezing cold." He warned, he momentarily looked away, staring into her eyes for so long was making him uncomfortable, and he nervously rubbed his palms which had somehow become sweaty despite the biting cold of the night.

"I didn't know you cared so much, don't worry though, I'll get by." She assured.

"All you'll get is the cold." Arras's tone had become irate like a parent warning a disobedient child.

"I'm sure I'll be fine." Blake affirmed, crossing her arms across her chest.

"Just warning you, it's not gonna do us any good hunting Grimm if you're sneezing the whole forest down."

"Don't be so dramatic."

Arras looked away again. _Drop the subject idiot you're pissing her off. _"So what's up? Why the sudden need to see me?" he asked in an effort to move the conversation to something less heavy. Blake stared at him with a confused look for a moment, as if she had forgotten.

"Oh, I actually just wanted to talk for a moment." She answered; Arras gave her a puzzled stare.

"Talk? I assumed you'd want to do some hunting or something?"

"We can, and we will, it's just I wanted to get to know you a bit better. I mean Alex is a good guy but I find it hard to talk to him." Blake explained.

"What with him being around Yang's finger and all?" Arras mocked his other half, Blake smile sheepishly before nodding in agreement.

"It is a little annoying." She confessed.

"You're telling me, I can't hide from it." Blake laughed at Arras's frustration.

"Yeah, I suppose I can't really complain." They both smiled at each other. Arras took a hold of Blake's arm and began walking around the campus.

"Well if you want to talk, let's walk while we do it, I'll freeze like a statue if we stand here any longer." Taking the hint Blake walked beside Arras as they made their way towards the outlying reached of Beacon.

"So what do you wanna know?" asked Arras, though he'd never admit it, he was actually excited to just talk, though no-one in team AZRA would believe he'd choose talking over killing Grimm.

Blake looked dumbfounded for a moment, "Well. Err… where do I start? I guess tell me about your team?"

"Which one?" Arras counter questioned. Blake blinked in surprise.

"That's right, Yang told us about your last team, BARK was it? What happened to them?" Blake immediately bit her tongue. _What are you doing? You can't just ask him to relive the memories of dead friends. _Arras could see the turmoil on the young girl's face.

"Relax; I don't mind talking about it. Well if Yang told you everything then you know they didn't all die. Razlov and I made it out, though Blackwall and Krippler weren't so lucky." He explained calmly, though Blake could tell there was pain in his voice.

"Were you guys close?" she asked.

"Yeah, first team we had, and man, Tiberius, he was a real man, size of a mountain yet calm as anything. Alex really looked up to him you know, aspired to be just like him. He didn't let anything get him down, always willing to help, and he treated us like family, like we were his younger siblings or something." Blake was entranced, seeing Arras smile as he spoke of someone close to him. _Is he really the demon that Alex spoke of, he seems so, innocent._ "Then poof, he was gone, just like that." Arras finished.

"What happened exactly, if you don't mind me asking?"

Arras shook his head, "It was just a simple mission. Blackwall thought we had been pushing ourselves too hard recently, so he picked us a nice and easy job request. Protect a shipment of dust as it made its way across Mantle. The train stopped in some backwater village, don't remember its name, not really important. Anyway the four of us went to this cafe, seemed nice enough. Blackwall went to the counter to get us some drinks while the rest of us found a nice quiet spot at the back of the café. Then this shady looking dude walks in, covered in this massive black trench coat, I mean, that should have been suspicious enough, it was like a hundred degrees outside and this guys wearing a trench coat!" Arras exclaimed. Blake quietly listened to the tale.

"Anyway he walks right up to Blackwall, says something, not sure what, too far away to hear, then he just screams; THIS IS FOR SUNSET FIELDS! Then boom, this huge explosion goes off, tears the damn cafe apart. Fucker was some suicide bomber, Blackwall was dead no doubt about it, we were still picking ourselves out of the rubble, trying to make sense of what just happened when we were set on by these White Fang goons, we tried to make a break for it, but panic and chaos had set in. Krippler wanted to go back for Blackwall, dumb fuck, Blackwall was dead, dead as dead can be. We managed to funnel them down an alley, but there were too many of them, someone had to stay behind and hold them off whilst the others made their escape. Nobody was willing to make the decision, so I forced control and made the decision for them. Krippler stayed and I got Razlov the hell out of there." Arras sighed as he finished recounting the loss of his friends.

"I probably didn't seem it at the time but making that call was rough, but it had to be done, just another reason for Alex to hate me I guess."

Blake blinked for a few moments trying to process everything she just heard, "I'm sure he doesn't hate you, you saved his life after all, and Razlov's, that's got to count for something." She tried to comfort the broken man.

"I guess. Anyway onto happier times, Foresight made Alex team leader and he fought to choose his own team members, that's when we met Ashton, and later on Zinear, thus AZRA was formed, or Azara if you want the code-name." Arras smiled, they had walked a quarter of the way around, and although the night was cold Arras didn't feel it, something about talking with Blake seemed too distracting. As he looked up to the broken moon he silently wished it would never end. He turned to Blake who had a strange look on her face.

"What's the matter, don't tell me I got you all bummed out?" he teased.

"It's not that, it's just, what that man said, the suicide bomber. Why was he blaming you for Sunset Fields?"

Sunset Fields was a small village that belonged to the Faunus people; it was also home to a White Fang outpost. One day the whole village was destroyed, few managed to escape the carnage and those that did told horrific tales of bloodshed and massacre. The story goes that four demons emerged from the forest, clad in black they lay waste to its inhabitants. Man, woman and child were cut down like cattle, and then the village was set ablaze. The four demons then vanished as quickly as they came.

Arras rubbed the back of his head nervously, "I take it you know the story?"

"Of course, every Faunus knows the tale. Mothers use it to frighten their children."

"Did you also know that a convoy of dust trucks was attacked by the White Fang, three miles east of Sunset Fields, and that the attackers were driven off by a team of hunters sent to protect the convoy?" Arras queried, Blake hesitantly shook her head. "Did you know the team was from Foresight?"

Blake froze, stopping dead in her tracks, her eyes wide in horror, her heart thundering a mile a minute. Moments passed and Arras calmly waited for Blake to come to.

"Wha…what are you saying?" she spluttered, her nerves shaking her body. _Was he responsible? Did he murder all those people? Him and his team?_

"The team fought off the attackers, but silently pursued the survivors back to Sunset Fields, once there they came up with a decision. Destroy the White Fang outpost and any that stand in their way. They attacked from four different sides, causing maximum confusion, and well, you know the rest of the story." Blake was shaking violently, and her eyes were glazed with tears.

"All those people, innocent people, and the children. You're saying you killed them all!"

A loud crack rang out through the still night, Blake stumbled back her hands darting to her cheek as it began to sting. Arras glared at her, panting heavily, his red eyes burning brighter than ever.

"Don't you dare!" Arras spat, emphasizing each word. "Don't you dare accuse me or my team of that atrocity. To even think you'd believe me capable of such a thing, I…" Arras became at a loss for words, overcome with anger. However the revelation of what he had just done quickly sank in. His features became soft and he hesitantly stepped towards Blake.

"I'm so sorry I didn't mean to hit you, it's just, it's just that well to me you're a friend. In fact you're the only friend I've ever had, and I know I've done bad things but to hear you accuse me of this? I, I'm so sorry." The young man pleaded. Blake lowered her hand from her face, which had burnt a bright red.

"I'm sorry too; I shouldn't have jumped to such conclusions. I know you would never do such a thing. I forgive you." She smiled weakly at Arras who softly smiled back.

"In any case the team responsible is called Razgriz, and we want nothing to do with those psycho's. To know that we lost friends because of what they did. Well, let's just say some ideas of payback have been floating around team AZRA." Arras smirked, before he and Blake continued their walk around Beacon.

Moments passed in silence as the duo walked through the midnight light, Arras had to squint to be able to see where they were walking, though pitch black darkness was all he could make out. He was sure Blake and her Faunus enhanced senses were having no trouble seeing through the murky darkness. _Well done, so much for keeping it cool, dumb shit why did you have to strike her. _Arras was desperately trying to think of a new subject to talk about.

"Yang also said you were being hunted by some man, Geralt?" Blake asked breaking the tension. Arras sighed heavily.

"What I wouldn't give to live without that wolf on my back. I guess you want to hear the story?"

"Better than walking in silence don't you think?" she pointed out. Arras nodded in agreement.

"Well Yang might have told you about the Gauntlet trials, those who complete it in the fastest time are crowned the Champion of the Gauntlet. That man, or woman, would want for nothing in the city of Cavros. You see the Gauntlet is a brutal test of strength, will and perseverance. When Alex arrived at Foresight Geralt was the current champion, had been for the past three years. Living like a king for so long probably made him soft; I guess he got used to the royalty treatment. He never needed to pay for weapons or armour, food or lodging. He got all the best jobs and I hear woman flocked to his bed, lucky bastard." Arras grinned.

"Anyway when some little fourteen year old twerp beat Geralt's time, well, pissed isn't the word I'd used to describe him. He challenged Alex to a duel; beat the ever loving shit out of him too, left him for dead. Alex trained rigorously with Blackwall for a few months then challenged Geralt to a duel, with my help and some luck we managed to beat him, just. After that Geralt up and left Foresight, was missing for two years, then one day shows up outta the blue. He doesn't say a word to old friends. Just walks straight up to Alex, right in the middle of Foresight and begins beating the crap out of him. Everyone jumps in, but, something was different with Geralt, he was already a strong hunter, but now he was something different. He killed a few hunters, some were even his friends. Then the Hanta-kira showed up and Geralt made a run for it. Ever since then he's tried to kill Alex dozens of times. Each one we barely escape. Do you know what it's like to live with a wolf on your back?" Arras finally finished explaining. Blake looked off into the distance. Arras could see something was clearly on the young girl's mind.

"You do know what it's like to live with a wolf on your back." Arras pointed out, noticing the girl's pained expression.

"Did I ever tell you why I go on these trips with you?" she asked, Arras shook his head.

"Is it because I'm such great company?" Arras joked, getting a smile out of Blake.

"It's because I have trouble sleeping, because something keeps me up at night, a fear that I can't shake." The Faunus girl looked shaken, Arras leaned in closer.

"Tell me what it is, maybe I can help." He tried his best to comfort her.

"Did Yang ever tell Alex how Ruby got into Beacon so young?" Blake queried the man.

"Yeah, something about her scythe skills."

"Well there's more to it than that. Over a year ago she was a bystander at a robbery, she beat up the thugs but their leader got away, a man by the name of Torchwick. We ran into him again a little while later. He was working with the White Fang to steal dust shipments. Some friends and I managed to stop them but he got away again. Ever since then he's been off the radar, the girls and I tried our best to track him down but we turned up nothing. Eventually life moved on, though I couldn't quite shake the feeling he was going to come back." Blake explained her turmoil, her voice was pained and it only infuriated Arras that Blake should live with this fear.

"If you're having trouble sleeping now, then that means…"

"That he's back, I've been reading reports of Dust shipments going missing again. If it is him, then you know what he'll do." Blake spoke cryptically.

"He's going to get rid of those who got in his way last time. He's going to kill team RWBY." Arras answered bluntly, the admission shook Blake.

"My thoughts exactly."

The pair stood on the far side of Beacon, alone and in the dark, left with difficult thoughts. Arras stared into the amber eyes of the Faunus girl. _There may be nothing we can do about Geralt or my problems, but I can help Blake with hers. I won't let her live like this._

"Alright tell me the steps you took to track him down, any leads or clues, something to get us started." Arras's tone was confident, yet Blake could hear the anger in it.

"We searched everything Arras, trust me."

"Just tell me, a fresh perspective might help, and besides, I got some skill in tracking down criminals." Arras gloated. Blake sighed; _well it couldn't hurt to tell him._

"Weiss was able to learn that the Vale is the only place being hit with these robberies. So we knew it was a local operation. I tried my best to get information from the White Fang, but unfortunately I hit only dead ends. Yang questioned this shady guy named Junior at his club. Torchwick hired his thugs to rob the store Ruby was at, but sadly he had nothing new to tell her." Blake stopped speaking seeing the expression on Arras's face.

"When you say Yang 'questioned' him, you really mean?"

"Exactly that, she asked him if he knew anything about Torchwick's whereabouts but he didn't." Blake answered truthfully. Arras held his palm to his face, before dragging it down his features.

"Argh, are you serious, she 'asked' him where his former business partner was. What is wrong with you? This guy has hired thugs and you, what? Expected him to just give you the information freely?" Arras chastised. Blake looked at a loss for words. "Look this is what's gonna happen. We're gonna go find Junior and this time you'll let me 'question' him."

"Now? But it's a Saturday night, his club will be packed. We'll never get in." Blake explained in exasperation. Arras stroked his chin for a moment, trying to think of a plan.

"Jaune once told Alex that this Junior guy respects and fears Yang. Not enough to give her the information she wants, but maybe enough to let us in?"

"Yang?!" Blake screamed, "We can't bring Yang into this, she'll tell Alex for sure!"

"Maybe, but's the best shot we have of finding Torchwick."

"And what if Junior really does know nothing, what then?" Blake pointed out.

"He knows, he can't not know, trust me on this. I'll get the information we need." Arras assured the worried stricken girl.

_I don't like the sound of this, but, if he can get to Torchwick, then it's worth a shot. _"Fine, but if we're getting Yang let me do the talking, you two aren't exactly on good terms." She explained. Arras gave her a nod of agreement. With that the duo set off back to Beacon.

* * *

Yang landed punch after punch on her victim, he tried his best to dodge but Yang was far too fast. She sweeped his legs before crushing his head into the ground with her boot. Again and again she stomped on the broken man's head.

"How do you like it, huh Arras? How does it feel to be the one getting beaten to a pulp? Not so cocky now huh?" Yang's gloating was cut off. Suddenly she felt a force on her mouth. She stumbled back struggling to breath. _What's happening to me? Why can't I breathe?_

Yang's eyes snapped open; panic and confusion riddled her heart. She was back in the darkness of her dorm room. Bright amber eyes consumed her vision and her heart steadied. The force on her mouth was a hand.

"Shh, it's just me Yang." Blake spoke softly as to not arouse the others.

"Blake? What's the matter? Trouble sleeping again?" The blonde heavyweight showed concern for her partner, clearly aware of the distress Blake had been having these past few weeks.

"Something like that. Listen, I need you to get dressed then meet me outside the door. I'll explain everything there." Blake informed her. Before Yang had anytime to question her, Blake left the room leaving Yang confused. With nothing else to do Yang began to get dressed.

Exiting the dorm room, Yang found Blake just down the hall looking rather nervous. She approached her partner with her trade mark grin on her face. "What's up Blake-y? What's all the cloak and dagger about?" she beamed at her Faunus friend.

Blake continued to look worried, which removed Yang's smile. "Promise you won't be mad at me?" pleaded Blake.

"Mad? Why would I be mad?" she queried in a confused tone.

"Because of me." a familiar voice came from behind her. Yang spun around expecting to see Alex, though once she spotted the red eyes her attitude completely changed.

"What the hell? What are you doing here Arras and where's Alex?" bellowed the blonde huntress.

"Quiet, don't you know it's rude to shout when people are trying to sleep." Mocked the red eyed hunter.

"He's with me; look there's a lot to explain and not a whole lot of time to explain it." Blake informed her partner.

* * *

"So Alex has no idea you're doing this?" queried Yang, Arras and Blake both nodded. "And why should I keep this a secret?"

Blake stepped forward, "Because I'm asking you to, as a favor to me." Yang gave out a long and drawn out sigh.

"Fine but only because you asked, and don't think for a second I'm doing this for you." She held a menacing finger at Arras.

"Relax there top heavy, as long as you keep your mouth shut I don't care why you do it. Now can we get to the task at hand?" Arras asked trying to get the gang moving. Blake nodded.

"The reason we woke you is because we need your help getting to Junior." Blake explained, Yang stared at her wide eyed.

"And why would you two want to see Junior?"

"Arras wants to question him about the location of Torchwick." Blake explained calmly, this plan rested on Yang agreeing to help and the best person to convince her was Blake.

"I already questioned him, he knew nothin'." She pointed out.

"That's because you have shoddy interrogation skills. I'll do it properly, I'll get the information we need then we can take Torchwick out of the picture and Blake can move on without having to constantly look over her shoulder!" spat Arras, his tone filled with conviction.

"You honestly expect me to believe you're doing this for Blake?" Yang shot back.

"I don't care what you believe. Besides, if Blake is right and Torchwick really is planning to eliminate team RWBY I'd think you'd be willing to do anything to protect your sister." Arras countered; he couldn't help but grin smugly at his argument.

"Nobody is going to lay a finger on Ruby!" Yang snarled.

"Good, then you'll take us to see Junior."

Yang snarled at Arras like a wild beast. "Fine, let's go!" Yang spun on her heels and marched out of Beacon, Blake and Arras followed closely behind.

The trio made their way across the Beacon's campus. Blake and Arras followed Yang to a structure just at the edge of the main road that lead the city. Arras eyed the structure hesitantly.

"What's this?" he asked in confusion.

"It's a student parking lot. Wait here." Yang commanded before disappearing into the structure. Blake turned towards Arras.

"You don't suppose you could be a bit nicer towards her, our plan does rest on her help after all." Blake asked, hoping to ease the anger between the two hunters.

"Sorry Blake, some people just don't mix. Yang and I are a prime example."

"Please, if Yang and Weiss can get along then there's a chance for world peace." Blake joked.

Before Arras could answer Yang exited the structure pushing a motorbike out with her. "Nice ride." Arras complimented.

"Yeah well don't get any ideas, Blake and I will take Bumblebee here to the club. You can make your own way there." Yang snapped at the young man.

Arras shrugged, "Whatever, I'll meet you there."

"Meet us there? You don't honestly think you can beat us the-" Yang blinked in confusion, Arras was gone.

"Don't tell me you forgot about his semblance? I wouldn't be surprised if he was already waiting for us there." Blake informed her partner. Yang grunted in anger before she and Blake mounted the motorbike and set off towards Junior's club.

* * *

As Blake predicted Arras was already stood across the street from the club when Yang pulled up next to him. A large queue formed at the entrance all the way to the end of the street. Laser and spot lights danced and shone into the night sky, and loud thumping music could be heard emanating from the club, even from this distance Arras could feel the vibrations in his bones.

"What's the matter Arras, not your scene?" Yang mocked as she and Blake approached the uneasy hunter.

"Can't say I'm looking forward to stepping in there. I'd rather be hunting Grimm than getting pissed and making myself deaf. The thrill of a life or death fight is all I need." The young man admitted. Yang gave him an approving nod.

"Thrill seeker huh? Well that puts you up a notch in my book Arras, that puts you on notch one." Yang spoke as she crossed the street to the club, Blake followed while Arras trailed close behind. Yang didn't need introducing, the second the bouncers spotted her, fear overrode their features.

"Uh, Yang, we didn't expect to see you here." The bouncers voice wavered, from fear no doubt.

"I'm here to see Junior." Admitted Yang, her tone demanding.

"Of course, you'll find him inside." The bouncer unhooked the velvet rope that barred the entrance.

"These two are with me; they'll be coming in as well." Yang spoke as she gestured to Blake and Arras. The bouncer eyed them for a moment.

"Of course, whatever you say we don't want any trouble." The bouncer pleaded.

"Thank you." Yang purred, she stroked the bouncer's cheek before stepping inside. The music hit Arras hard as the doors opened up; it practically rattled his teeth which only set him further on edge. Blake entered behind Yang though Arras took a minute. He stared around at the scene before him. _How do I get myself in these situations? Guess this is friendship for you. _Arras drew a deep breath before pressing into the club.

It was worse inside than Arras had feared, barely into the club and all Arras could think about was leaving. The trio stood at the entrance looking out over the club. All around the edges were seats and cubicles packed with people, on the far left was the bar crowded with patrons eager to get more drinks and the entire centre was one massive dance floor sunken into the ground. Arras watched as people jumped up and down to the deafening music, the bass vibrated through every part of his body. Light danced and flickered everywhere, it was giving Arras a headache. People were pushing passed one another bumping and stumbling into each other. It was chaos, Arras gritted his teeth.

"What do you guys think?!" Yang bellowed trying to outdo the music. Blake looked uneasy but a lot calmer than Arras. Yang gave him a light nudge which caused him to jump out of his skin.

"What's the matter?" Yang yelled, Arras tapped his ear to gesture that he couldn't hear her. Yang grabbed his shoulder and pressed her lips to his ear.

"I said, what's the matter?" she still yelled, Arras put his lips to her ear.

"Can we just find Junior so we can get this over with? I feel, off." Admitted the shaken hunter. Yang gave him a nod before pushing her way through the crowd, she held onto Blake's hand that in turn held onto Arras's. They were halfway across the dance-floor when someone shoved into Arras. He lost his grip with Blake and soon found himself stranded in a sea of sweaty bodies. He frantically searched for Yang and Blake but it was useless, there were too many people. He tried to push through but it was a wasted endeavor, the floor was dense with people. His heart began to thunder in his chest, his nerves shook his body. He spun in every direction trying desperately to spot the girls. He felt himself being shoved in every direction; this was his form of hell. He just wanted out, to leave, to be rid of this place.

He stumbled backwards bashing into someone, he turned around to spot a man, his face twisted with anger. He screamed something at Arras though he couldn't hear what he was saying. The man shoved Arras screaming something incomprehensible, Arras just wanted to leave, he stared panic stricken at the man. He raised his fist cracking Arras across the jaw. In that moment everything changed. The fear turned to anger, panic to hate, worry to detest. Arras raised his head and glared at the stranger, he pressed forward raising his fist for another blow. Arras caught the man's attack, and began to crush his fist in his hand. The stranger's face twisted to one of agony, he screamed only to be drowned out by the music. Arras could sense his pitiful Aura, it paled in comparison to his own. He could feel the man's bones begin to break under his grip; he fell to his knees writhing in pain as Arras glared down on the helpless man. The bones began to pierce the skin; blood flowed from his fist and down his arm. Arras raised his right fist and drew it back, he was about to strike the helpless man but before he could he felt something pull at his arm. He spun around to spot his raven haired friend, she looked worried. She tugged again at his arm gesturing him to leave, he released the man's fist who collapsed to the floor. Blake stared at the scene before dragging Arras away.

Blake pulled him over to Yang who was waiting for them by a flight of stairs that was closed off by the same velvet rope as the entrance. Yang gave a gesture as to say "What happened?" Blake just shook her head. A bouncer unhooked the rope and the trio ascended the stairs and through a doorway at the top. Once through the music became muted, but you could still hear the bass, like war drums in the distance. They found themselves in a corridor with the only noticeable feature being a set off double doors halfway down and to the left. Yang approached the door.

"He's waiting inside, so what get ready for…whatever it is you're gonna do." She informed Arras. He took a moment to steady his nerves, the anger from before was still present, but at least he was back in the right frame of mind. He drew a few deep breaths, resetting his mood to before he entered the club. He gave a grin to Yang and moved for the door. Yang blocked his path however.

"Promise me you won't hurt him." Commanded Yang, Arras gave her a puzzled look.

"What makes you think I'll harm him?" he queried. Yang grabbed his left arm and showed him his palm, it was stained with blood. Arras pulled free.

"You hurt a stranger for god knows what reason, now you say you're going to interrogate Junior, I have no idea what you're gonna do. So I'm asking, no, telling you not to hurt him." Yang demanded, Arras folded his arms and thought for a moment.

"Alright deal, I won't harm Junior." He assured, Yang took a moment to read his features before giving him a nod, she spun on her heel and threw open the double doors.

The office was rather spacious; Arras immediately began to drink in his surroundings. On his right the wall was a complete bookcase. _Who knew this Junior guy was an avid reader? _Dead ahead of him was a window that looked out over the dance floor, Arras remembered seeing it from the outside, though it looked like a large mirror. _A_ o_ne way mirror, clever. _In front of the window was a large mahogany desk, a tall well-built man dressed in a three piece suit minus the jacket stood looking out over the dance-floor. On Arras's left were more bookcases, as well as trinkets, statues and other odd mementos. Set in front of it was a large leather sofa, seated on it were two girls, Arras pegged their age similar to his own. They were twins made apparent by their similar looks; both had pale white skin with long, black, straight hair that rested above their shoulders. One was clad in red, the other white; they wore strapless dresses with black lining. Their outfits seemed to be made out of, or decorated with, newspaper articles. They both eyed the trio with an equal amount of disdain.

"Yang, you're here, why?" spoke the tall man in a confused tone, he had turned his attention to the group, placing his palms on the desk.

"Just came to check up on my old buddy." Beamed Yang, she too placed her palms onto the desk and glared at Junior, "And to ask where Torchwick is hiding?" She snarled at him, Junior's features changed, he was clearly afraid.

"I already told you, I don't know where he is, and that's the truth." Junior protested. Yang turned to Arras though he was transfixed on the two girls who sat on the sofa, they both glared at him. A wicked grin crept across Arras's face.

"What are your names?" Arras asked, though it sounded more like an order. The girls didn't answer.

"That's Miltiades and Melanie." Junior answered for them.

"Your sisters?" he queried. Junior gave a short laugh.

"Hardly." This gained a smile from Arras.

"So what then, prostitutes?" Both girls leapt to their feet, anger burned in their eyes, both on the cusp of attacking.

"What is wrong with you? No, they're my bodyguards!" Junior snapped, "Who the hell is this guy?" he asked Yang, who merely shrugged.

"What kind of man needs two petite girls to protect him? Not a very good one if you ask me." The girls were now practically in Arras's face, the dark tension hung heavy in the air.

"Are you looking for a fight cause if you keep this up –"

"You'll do what?" Arras snapped, interrupting Junior. "Tell me, Yang beat you up didn't she, she also bested all your henchman, and I bet she even beat you." He glared at the two girls in front of him. "Now, if you fear and respect Yang, how would you feel towards someone who beat her down?" this admission gained a moment of hesitation from the girl in red, though the other still looked determined as ever.

"Is that true?" queried Junior. Yang nervously rubbed the back of her head.

"Well there's more to it than that but yeah; I lost to him in a duel." Yang admitted, though it wasn't easy for her.

"Now go ahead and finish that threat. Not only is Yang here, someone who beat down your entire club, but someone stronger than her is here as well, not to mention Blake who is just as powerful. The three of us could reduce this place to cinders if we wanted to, but sure, threaten me." Arras spoke with utter confidence, not to mention his tone felt cold, void of emotion. The hairs on Blake's neck started to do handstands.

"Look," Junior spoke calmly, trying to ease the tension. "I really don't know where Torchwick is, if I did I'd tell you guys in an instant, but that's the truth, I can't tell you what I don't know." Junior was pleading at this point. Blake and Yang look deflated, he sounded genuine. Arras's features softened and he took a step back from the girls. He gave a look around at everyone before nodding slowly.

"In that case." Arras moved in a flash, he kicked the girl in white in the stomach; she was sent flying smashing into the bookcases behind her. He spun, sweeping the other girls feet from under her, he pressed his boot into the girl's throat, removed his two blades and pointed one at her head, the other at her abdomen. All of this happened in a few seconds, people barely had time to blink let alone comprehend what was happening.

"What the hell?" Blake screamed.

"What are you doing?!" Yang shouted at him. Two thugs burst in through the door. Junior made a lunge for Arras.

"Nobody move!" Bellowed Arras drowning out everyone else. "Lest you want me to skewer this girl." He threatened. Melanie pulled herself from the book case; her whole body was trembling in anger, her face twisted like some form of demon.

"Don't even think you can get close before I kill her, I can sense all of your Aura's, I don't even need to use my eyes to see when you'll make your move, of course by then it will be too late for Militards or whatever her name is!" The young girl began to struggle under his boot. "Don't move, this is the part where I'd say you'd regret it but you won't live long enough to regret it."

Everyone stood froze to the spot. The bass continued to boom in the background, outside people danced and drank the night away unaware that just above them a life was hanging in the balance.

"Now, tell me where Torchwick is or I'm going to have poor, what's her face, paint your floor red." Arras threatened.

"I already told you I don't know!" pleaded Junior.

"Arras let her go, this isn't how we do things." Yelled Yang.

"No, this is how I do things. Now I'm going to give you to the count of five to tell me what I want to know, or you're gonna have half a set of twins guarding you." Arras pressed down on the girls throat causing her to choke and splutter.

"Five."

Everyone began yelling at Arras, they screamed shouted and pleaded with him to let her go. Melanie stared daggers at Arras, her body shaking with the urge to lunge forward, yet the thought of not being fast enough to save her sister held her in check.

"Four."

"Seriously Arras let her go now, I'm warning you!" Bellowed Yang.

"If you kill her I'll hunt you down to the ends of this earth!" Junior threatened.

"Three."

"Please Arras, you don't want to do this, we can find Torchwick another way." Blake pleaded. The room was filled with screams of anger and pleas of sorrow. None moved Arras though.

"Two."

Junior slammed his fist on the desk. "Don't you think I would have told you by now, I don't know anything. Let her go!" screamed Junior.

"Arras for fuck sake you can't just murder a girl for some information!" Yang attempted to reason.

"ONE." Arras yelled.

"Fine! I'll tell you what you want to know, just please let her go!" bellowed Junior drowning out everyone else. A moment of silence hung in the air.

"Information first then the girl." Countered Arras. Junior, stressed to the ends of his nerves ran his hands through his hair.

"Look, I don't know his exact whereabouts, but I did hear he helps recruit Faunus for the White Fang at a warehouse down at the docks. If you go there you might find him doing one of his rallies." Junior informed the trio; Arras glared at him for a moment before nodding in satisfaction.

"You see, I knew you were hiding something." Arras released the girl and sheathed his blades. Melanie jumped over the couch and rushed Arras.

"Melanie!" boomed Junior, causing her to freeze. "Don't. Let them go. We don't need any more trouble." The young girl glared at Arras before moving to her sister and clutching her in an embrace. "Just get out of here." Junior ordered. Arras shoved passed Blake and Yang. He shoved his way across the dance-floor pushing everyone out of his way. Within moments he found himself back outside in the cold night air, he didn't stop though, he pressed across the street and over to where Yang had parked her motorbike. He drew a deep breath into his lungs and closed his eyes.

"What the hell was that all about!" screamed Yang, she grabbed a hold of Arras and began to shake him violently. "You promised me."

"I promised I wouldn't harm Junior, and I didn't. Besides we got what we came for."

"At the cost of threatening a girl's life?" countered Yang.

"That's rich coming from someone who beat her down; I didn't even harm the girl." Arras pointed out. Yang released him taking a step back.

"That was different."

"Yes it was, this time no-one got hurt and we got the information we need. No harm, no foul." Explained Arras.

"You could have at least filled us in on your plan." Blake informed.

"To be honest the plan formed when I entered the office. Besides, your genuine surprise at my attack only made me look more unpredictable. The perfect element to convince someone is unstable is to have their own friends turn against them."

"So you used us?" Yang spat.

"To get what we wanted." Arras countered.

"And what if Junior really didn't know anything, you were what, gonna kill that girl?" Yang snapped.

"Hardly, Junior valued her life too much; if he still pleaded innocence when I reached 'one' then I'd know he was telling the truth. Turns out he was lying the whole time, even lied to your face." Arras smugly pointed out. Yang look deflated. "Look, I was never going to kill her, no-one was in real harm, I just wanted to make absolutely sure he wasn't hiding anything and that was the only option I could think of."

The girls looked at one another, moments passed in silence as the tension from before's events seemed to fade away. "Thank you Arras, now we know where Torchwick is hold up." Blake thanked the young man. Yang punched her palm.

"Now I say we find this guy and bust him up!" Yang grinned.

"Now that's something I can get behind." Arras beamed. Yang and Blake mounted the bike and Yang kick started the bike into life, the engine gave a hefty roar as she did.

"You go on ahead Arras we'll catch up." Yang suggested. Arras gave the girls a quick nod, before seemingly vanishing into thin air, the only traces was the dust kicked up from his speed, the girls watched it shoot off into the distance.

"Speed must be a useful Semblance." Yang admitted.

"You know if we don't hurry up you'll miss out on all the fun." Blake joked. Yang revved the bike into life and shot down the road towards the docks.

* * *

Yang quietly rode the bike through the barren emptiness that was the docks at two in the morning. Warehouses and docking cranes were scattered all over. Blake tapped Yang on the shoulder before pointing to a warehouse in the distance; it was the only one with its lights still on.

"Not exactly subtle." Yang whispered. She pulled the bike into an alley not too far away.

"Let's see if we can find a side entrance." Blake whispered as she and Yang maneuvered around the warehouse. Voices and cheers could be heard coming from inside, this was definitely the place. The duo stalked through the shadows till they came to the rear of the warehouse.

"Psst, up here." Came a whisper from above. The girls craned their heads to spot Arras on the roof waving down at them. The girls quietly climbed the fire escape and soon found themselves on the roof with Arras. There was another level to the warehouse; they were only on the roof of the halfway point.

"Should we make our way up there?" Yang asked pointing to the roof of the second level.

"No need." Arras explained, moving towards the wall he opened up a vent. "We can get inside through here."

"A vent? Really?" complained Yang.

"Unless you wanna burst in through the front door?" Arras chastised.

"Actually that sound like a great idea." The blonde shot back.

"Will you two quit it, let's go!" Blake snapped, she dropped onto all fours and began to crawl through the vent.

"Ladies first." Arras gestured to the hole in the wall.

"What, just so you can stare at my ass?" Yang spat. Arras gave her a shrug.

"Fine, I'll stare at Blake's instead." With that Arras dropped down and began to crawl through. Yang glared at him before following suit. The vent was cramped and dark; Arras tried his best not to cough from all the dust. It was claustrophobically small, and there was barely enough light to see, the fact that Blake wore dark clothing didn't help him distinguish her any easier. The voices grew louder and louder, they crawled for what seemed like a couple of minutes. Blake spotted a vent below her and halted in front of it. Without any warning Arras found his face buried into Blake's rear, he immediately pulled back.

"What's up Blake why'd you-Ow!" Arras snapped, Yang slammed her face into Arras's rear.

"What the hell why'd you stop?" she snapped.

"I didn't, Blake did and watch where you're going." He shot back.

"Whatever, bet you buried your face in Blake's ass."

"I did, I loved it and it was soft." He grinned.

"Arras! Stop it." Blake complained.

"What, it is." He affirmed.

"You do have a great ass Blake-y." Yang purred at her teammate.

"Are you both hitting on me? Stop it, we need to focus. There's a vent here, with a beam just below, we can drop onto it to get a better view." Blake informed them. She carefully pulled the vent screen up and placed it on the other side of the opening before silently dropping down onto the beam, she moved forward a little bit, to allow Arras to drop down who did the same for Yang. The trio now balanced precariously on a metal girder high above the warehouse floor. The place was teeming with Faunus who were all cheering at a man on the stage.

"There, that's him." Blake pointed to the man talking on the stage. The man had slanted dark-green eyes and bright, long, orange hair, with long bangs covering his right eye. He was wearing a black bowler hat with a red band. He was also wearing a red-collared white suit and a small grey scarf, as well as long black pants and black shoes.

"Is he wearing guy liner?" Arras asked confused. Yang and Blake gave muted chuckle.

"I would like to mention the fact that you and I all have a common enemy, the ones in control, and the people pulling the strings, the dirty rotten humans that run our kingdoms." Torchwick bellowed from the stage, his speech was met with whoops and cheers from the crowd.

"Is he going somewhere with this?" Arras asked in a puzzled tone.

"The government, the military even the schools. They're all to blame for your lot in life!" More cheers erupted from the crowd. "And they're all pests that need to be dealt with! Fortunately, I'm the best exterminator around." Torchwick gloated as he paced the stage.

"This is worse than I feared." Blake admitted.

"I say we drop down there and crash this little party." Yang grinned. A loud groaning noise drew Arras's attention to the wall. The bolts holding the metal girder were beginning to give way, unable to support the added weight of three people.

"Erm, be careful what you wish for." The girder tore from the wall, collapsing to the ground. People screamed and jumped to safety as the girder smashed into the floor with a thundering crack. The three hunters all landed safely to the side, all with their backs to one another. The whole room became silent as they stared at the intruders. The team found themselves surrounded by hundreds of Faunus.

"Sorry guys just wanted to _crash _your party." Yang quipped.

"Yeah, thought we'd just _drop_ by." Arras joked. They pair turned to Blake who looked dumbfounded.

"I can't think of a pun, sorry guys." She apologized.

"Oh c'mon Blake you're letting the team down here." complained Yang.

"You had one job Blake, one job." chastised Arras.

"Well if it isn't the kitty cat and her two little mice." mocked Torchwick.

"Hey, Torchprick, stay right there, I'm gonna come over there and rearrange your face!" Arras spat, pointing his sword at the red haired man.

"Is that so? Well I'd love to stay and chat but I have places to be." A few moments of silence passed. "Erm, kill them." He ordered the mob; they screamed and brandished weapons of all manners.

"Brothers and sisters of the White Fang, please listen." Blake's words halted them in their tracks. "Don't listen to this man, following him will not get us what we want. It will only bring us more misery."

"What do you know?" shouted one of the mob.

"Yeah, you're fighting against us, you're no White Fang!" came another voice.

"I know what it's like to be beat down and spat on by the humans, but this is not the right path. You'll only cause more animosity, the humans may fear you but they'll never respect you. You'll fail."

"The only failure I see here is you!" yelled a voice.

"You're with the very people who push us around, you're a traitor!"

"Kill the girl!" yelled a man, he dashed forward, sword held high, and he swung it at Blake. A clash of metal rang out through the warehouse, the sword skidded across the floor, and the man recoiled from the attack. Arras stood between Blake and the mob.

"If you want her then you'll have to go through me. I'll kill all of you if you lay a hand on her." Snarled Arras, he clutched both blades in his hands. Yang moved over to his side.

"We don't want to hurt you but we will defend ourselves!" she warned the group.

"Kill them!" screamed a voice and the mob charged once more.

Yang blasted her gauntlets behind her and smashed into a wall of attackers like a bowling ball into pins. The wall broke and scattered as the ecstatic hunter set to work demolishing the mob. Arras dashed forward slashing at attackers as they set on him from all directions, he blocked an attack on his left before kicking someone on his right as he did Blake leapt over him and slashed at an attacker to his front, the duo spun in all directs making short work of the poorly combat experience mob, they were no match for three hunters. Arras ducked low as Blake unleashed Gambol Shroud, she threw the her katana passed some of the mob, pulling on the black ribbon she had tied to her wrist and the trigger of its internal pistol, the pistol fired, the velocity caused it shoot backwards, slashing at the back of the attackers. Blake leapt high her weapon fired dozens of times slashing and flying in every direction cutting down dozens off attackers in one move. Arras watched, thoroughly impressed by what he had just seen.

Blake landed and turned to Arras, "Not bad." He complimented.

"Thanks." She responded, Arras vanished from sight only to appear next to her cutting down a would be attacker from Blake's blind spot. "Thanks." She repeated.

"Anytime." Arras quickly scanned the area; Torchwick was nowhere to be scene. "We need to find Torchwick." He informed her.

"That's going to be a little difficult with this mob on us." Blake answered as she ducked an attack; slid passed him and sent him flying through the air with a single attack. Arras spotted a fuse box on the far wall.

"They can't fight us if they can't see us." Arras pointed out.

"They're Faunus we have better sight than humans." Blake informed him, while she continued to defend herself.

"Their eyes will still take time to adjust, in the confusion make for the window, take Yang with you." Arras commanded her.

"Got it."

Arras spun on the ground sweeping the legs of five attackers before quickly leaping into the air. As he did he attached his blades and launched an arrow at the fuse box, there was a loud twang followed by sparks of electricity. The warehouse was plummeted into darkness and screams of surprise rang out.

"Now!" yelled Arras and the trio launched themselves high and smashed through one of the skylights and and landed on the rooftop. The group looked around quickly.

"It won't be long before they get up here." Yang pointed out.

"We just need to find Torchwick." Arras barked, his impatience getting the best of him. A loud thundering sound above drew their attention to the sky; a twin engine dropship began to fly over them and towards the city.

"He must be in that Bulldog. How are we supposed to catch him now?" Blake asked in frustration. Arras glared menacingly at the Bulldog.

"I'll take care of it, you two follow from the road." Arras stepped forward; the girls shared a worried look before leaping from the building. Arras watched as the airship became smaller and smaller in the distance. He slammed the hilts of his blades together; his Aura began to burn within his body. A white shroud began to shimmer around him and a low humming noise could be heard.

"You threaten my friends, you threaten Blake. She can't sleep, she lives in fear of what you will do to her and those she holds dear. For that, you won't get away, I will kill you Torchwick, for her sake." Arras took a step forward, the ground beneath his foot shattered as he launched himself forward. He blasted through the air faster than he had ever moved in his life. He transmitted himself from rooftop to rooftop, blitzing across Vale's skyline. His speed sent ripples through the air, antennas and skylights were shattered from rooftops as he shot past. Soon the tiny speck of a dropship became larger and larger till he was right below it. He bolted ahead to a rooftop just in front of it. He watched as the ship was now flying his way. He spun Athena in his hand and held it like a spear, pointing his left arm into the air to help him aim.

"What goes up…" Using his Semblance to speed up his arm he launched his weapon like a missile through the air. The staff smashed through one of the airships engines, explosions and fire lit up the sky. Arras could hear the airship begin to stutter and watched as the pilot desperately tried to keep it in the air with just one engine. Arras launched himself high into the air with the help of his Semblance. He skyrocketed passed the airship and further towards the heavens. There he snatched a hold of his weapon as it still sailed upwards, now gravity had a hold of him and he turned back towards the earth.

"…must come down." Arras threw his spear back at the airship, with all his skill and a little luck the weapon struck home, shredding through the other engine. Now the floating vessel sank like a pebble towards the ground. Arras transmitted back to the ground and found himself in a deserted parking lot. Athena stood jutting out of the ground not far away. He strode over to his weapon and retrieved it. A thundering explosion rippled behind him, the shock wave almost blowing him over and the noise nearly deafening him. He turned to spot the wreckage of the airship not fifty meters away. Fortunately the main canopy was still intact, though the engines and tail fin lay shredded into pieces all around the wreckage, fires burnt brightly in the night and plumes of smoke raised into the night sky. Arras turned as the sound of an engine roared up next to him. Yang and Blake dismounted. Yang let out a low whistle whilst Blake looked focused.

"Gotta hand it to you that was pretty bad-ass." Yang patted the young man on the back. "Now let's go see what's behind door number one." She spoke as she strode through the burning wreckage towards the main canopy; she clutched the main door and tore the entire bulkhead clean off its hinges, tossing the massive door to the side like it was a paper towel. The trio stared inside in dis-belief.

"It's…empty." Blake's voice was small. A loud roaring noise drew their attention to the sky, through the plumes of smoke they watched as another Bulldog soared passed. With its main door wide open they spotted a man with bright red hair and wearing a white suit wave to them goodbye. The door closed shut and the airship shot away into the night sky. Arras ran after the ship but gave up after a few steps. _It's pointless; I don't have the Aura left to bring it down. God damn you Torchwick. _Arras collapsed onto his knees his body shaking with anger.

"God damn you!" he screamed slamming his fist into the ground. "Damn you! Damn you! Damn you!" each outburst was met with another punch to the floor. Blake slowly moved over to him and gently placed a hand on his shoulder. "This is the worst case scenario, you know that Blake. Now he knows we're after him, any plans he had for you or your friends will become top priority. He's going to come for you, and soon." Arras's voice was quiet yet pained.

"I don't care." Responded Blake confidently. Arras turned to see her stood to his right. "Tonight you found out more information than we did in months of idle searching. We know it's him that's responsible for the Dust robberies; we also know he's attempting to bolster the White Fang ranks and that he plans to attack those in power."

"Yeah!" Yang boomed, moving over to his left. "And when he does come for us we'll be ready, as long as team RWBY stands together we can get through anything." She grinned at Blake. Arras got to his feet.

"Alex and I will stand with you; no matter what Torchwick will not succeed. Crossing our friends will be the biggest mistake of his miserable life." The trio stared off into the night sky, the Bulldog long gone now. Yang looked around at the carnage.

"We better get going before the police show up, I don't want to explain what happened here." Yang informed them before jogging over to her bike.

"You go with her I'll catch up later." Arras informed Blake. Blake turned to leave but something snagged at her arm, it was Arras. "Before you go I just wanted to say that I meant what I said. I won't let Torchwick hurt you, or your friends." Arras drew his hand across her midriff before pulling her into an embrace. Blake momentarily froze at such a random outburst of emotion, and from Arras of all people. "Thank you, for being my friend." He quietly spoke into her shoulder. Blake relaxed placing her arms around his neck.

"No, thank you for being there to help when I needed it the most." The pair stood for a few seconds holding each other before Yang sounded the bike's horn.

"C'mon Blake we need to go now!" she bellowed. Arras pulled away.

"Go, I'll see you soon." Blake gave him a warm smile before dashing over to the bike. Yang revved the engine into life before tearing away down the access road. Arras maintained his smile till the pair turned a corner ad vanished out of sight. In an instant the warm smile turned into a malicious stare. Arras confidently strode over to the wrecked airship, the burning wreckage now just smoldering embers. He climbed inside and made his way into the cockpit. A man lay hunched over the controls dressed in his pilot garb. Blood poured down his face but the steady rise and fall of his chest told Arras that he was merely unconscious. Arras quickly cut the man's safety harness; grabbing a hold of his collar he began to drag the pilot, throwing him out of the ship. The man landed a few metres away with a hefty thud. He screamed as his consciousness came rushing back to him. The pain of his injuries flooding his system. Arras stood over the man, his burning red eyes glaring at him.

"Where did Torchwick run off to?" Arras demanded the injured man.

"I...I don't kno-argh." The man's words caught in his mouth as Arras placed his boot on his throat. The man struggled desperately trying to push Arras off of him but it was futile.

"Listen closely, your boss threatens the life of my friend and I would like to know where he is so I can pay him a…friendly visit. As a pilot you must know where he is because you most likely flown him there before. Now, when I ask a question I expect an answer. If I don't like the answer I hurt you, simple. Where is Torchwick?" Arras repeated easing off the man's throat.

"I don't know anything!" the man pleaded. In a flash Arras impaled the man's right hand into the ground. The man let out a blood curdling scream; tears began to glaze the man's eyes. Arras quickly bent down and placed a hand over the pilot's mouth muffling his cries. Arras leaned close into the strangers face.

"I clearly said where is Torchwick. Yes, I remember saying that because I'm the one that said it and I'm very particular about my words. Now, we're going to try this one more time, if you give me another wrong answer I'll take a part of you, do you understand?" Arras threatened as he removed his hand.

"Please!" the man cried, "I'll tell you anything!"

Arras grinned maniacally, "Oh, I know you will."

* * *

**A/N Thanks for taking the time to read this, it means a lot. I know OC stories don't get a lot of love but I just enjoy writing too much. Also a huge thank you to N7Christopher and ManxMG for offering to write background stories for two of my OC characters, (Razlov and Ashton) I can't wait to see what you guys come up with!  
****Anyway thanks again for the support, see you soon! (Hopefully, probably, maybe not, most likely not for a few months.)**


	10. The Eternity Forest: Part 1

**A/N Grab yourself something to drink, make yourself comfortable and enjoy the read :)**

* * *

**The Eternity Forest: Part 1**

Terra found herself walking through a damp and cold corridor, the only noise were the clicks of her heels echoing through the musty hall and the excited squeals of rats as they scurried in the shadows. The overhead lights flickered and a few of the bulbs had long since given out, however her Faunus enhanced vision gave her better sight in the murky darkness. "_How did you end up in a place like this?" _she inwardly thought to herself, despite the disgust for her surroundings a small smirk tugged at the corner of her lips. _"Though, we won't have to live like rats for much longer." _She finally reached the end of the corridor and briskly pushed open the large double doors. The room she entered was much cleaner than the rest of the abandoned warehouse, not by much but still a noticeable amount. A few fellow members of the White Fang were gathered around tables at the edges of the room. Map, documents and other pieces of information were scattered around the room, the Faunus spoke quietly no doubt discussing plans for their upcoming attack. Terra approached a large make shift table at the far end of the room, a smart dressed man leaned against it, glaring at a map of Vale.

"I hope you're here to give me good news?" the well-dressed man asked in his usual cheery tone, though he glared at her from behind his orange hair which hung over his right eye.

"I am, the attack on the harbour was successful, and we made off with the container, no hassle from the cops either. It was a complete success, Torchwick" Terra informed him, her tone sharp and clear as if addressing a superior officer. The man smiled a wicked grin.

"Good, that's what I like to here." The man beamed pushing up from the table. "Now, let me know when Team Achebe gets back, they were supposed to be back an hour ago." Torchwick commanded resuming his previous posture and glaring at the map once again. Terra stood frozen, her body slightly trembled. Torchwick glared up at her again. "What is it?" he snarled.

"Well, erm, the last message we received was, well, maybe you should see for yourself." Terra opened her scroll and placed it flat on the table, she opened a video file before turning it around so Torchwick could see. The video began; a man clad in the White Fang uniform stood in front of the camera, in the background Torchwick could see the other members moving crates into the back of a van.

"The operation was a success, the warehouse has been stripped clean and we had no trouble with the authorities. Once we're done here we'll…" Torchwick watched as an arrow struck the van in the background, it exploded with a thundering crack, the men were engulfed in the flames and the scroll was sent flying away, the only image now was of the night sky. Torchwick gritted his teeth as the audio continued to play. Sounds of screams and cries rang out, followed by gunfire and the unmistakable sound of sword on flesh, the unsettling audio played for 10 more seconds before the last pained cry rang out followed by silence. Torchwick leaned closer to the video as if it would somehow allow him to hear the audio better. He could hear the sound of footsteps approaching, and then a hand came into view picking up the scroll. Torchwick glared menacingly as the camera showed the face of the man responsible for the attack. Messy brown hair, a few of his bangs hung down his face covering his eyes, his features sharp and rugged and a smile plastered over his face. The wind blew the man's hair exposing his blood red eyes.

"Toooooorchwiiiiick, come out and plaaaaaaaay." Arras mocked in a childish tone, before bursting out laughing. "No, no, no I can do better, wait." Arras lowered the camera before slowly raising it again to show his face. "I don't know who you are, but I will find you, and I will kill you." This time Arras's voice was lower and gruff, but he still burst out laughing. "Okay seriously one more time please." He lowered the camera again and raised it. "I'm sorry but the lackeys you are calling are dead. Please try again later." His tone higher and more chipper. Torchwick slammed his fist into the table as the sound of Arras's laughter rang out through the large room. Everyone had stopped their discussion and listened intently to the message.

"Seriously though Torchprick, I will keep hunting you until I get my prize, if you won't come and face me then your lackeys will have to do. Whatever you're up to I'll put a stop to it." Arras leaned his face into the camera till all you could see was his menacing eyes. "You better sleep with one eye open Torchprick, cause I'm closer than you think." Arras dropped the scroll to the floor before crushing it with his foot. The message ended. Torchwick gritted his teeth, his fists clenched tight.

"Terra, our plans to deal with the students, how soon could we act on it?" his tone was calm and yet surprisingly cheerful for someone who had just been mocked and threatened.

"Our earliest window with the highest success would be three weeks from now." She answered her tone slightly wavering. "Though I'm not sure Cinder would appreciate-"

"She won't care what we do as long as we get results!" Torchwick snapped, interrupting the young woman. "Find out everything you know about this pest." He commanded gesturing to the scroll. "Make sure we deal with him as well." He ordered Terra; she gave a firm nod; quickly picked up her scroll and excited the large room. The discussions amongst the others in the room stirred up the second Torchwick glared at them. He turned and stared out the large pane windows that covered the far wall, moonlight shone through bathing him in its glow.

"Enjoy these last few weeks tormenting me, demon. Good things come to those who wait, and I've waited oh so long for this."

* * *

_The following morning;_

"Blaaaaake, I'm boooored." Yang whined as she lay on the bottom bunk, Blake's bed. Blake herself paced the room as she always did when she was high strung.

"Can you be a little more serious Yang, it's been a week since we almost took down Torchwick and Arras has still turned up nothing. God, why won't he let me go with him?" Blake ceased her pacing, clenching her fists in frustration.

"He told you why, you have studies and training to get on with, you just don't have the time or energy to be out hunting Roman every night, leave it to Arras. Besides you saw how he took down that Bulldog, he's determined at least." Yang's words eased Blake a little; she moved over to the bunk and sat on the floor leaning against the bed. Yang rolled onto her stomach and rested her head on top of Blake's. During the brief moment of silence Yang began to tug at Blake's bow, if it had been anyone else, anyone, they would be nursing a broken wrist right about now. However over the past year Blake and Yang had become incredibly close. Firstly they were partners, paired up during their very first mission. Once someone has been matched with a partner, they must work together during their time at Beacon. Having to rely so heavily on someone for so long forged a bond beyond a mere friendship that others may find. Facing down more life and death situations than even Yang would care to experience only brought the two huntresses closer and closer. Yang had now completely removed the black bow, tossing it aside and was now stroking Blake's velvet cat ears. Blake closed her eyes enjoying the sensation.

"Can I ask you a question Blake-y?" The blonde mused aloud as she carefully stroked the delicate ears. Blake's only response was a satisfied hum. "Why weren't you wearing your bow when we were with Arras?" Blake's eyes snapped open remembering her impromptu surprise for Arras.

"I…well you see…it's not a big deal, just didn't feel like wearing it." Blake blurted out.

"Blake you wear your bow around us, why don't you just admit you did it for Arras?" Yang smiled as she ousted her partner. Blake jumped to her feet stepping away from the bed, leaving a dejected Yang.

"I'm not into him if that's what you're getting at." Blake's tone was annoyed, only telling Yang she was on the right track.

"I wouldn't be surprised is all I'm saying. A mysterious man shows up, good looking, strong and helps you more than we ever could. Maybe you feel like you owe him or something." Yang added with a smirk, getting up from the bed.

"When did you become so wise?" Blake ridiculed, Yang merely shrugged as she placed her arm around Blake's shoulder.

"If there is one thing I know, its men." She responded with a cheesy grin.

"Does that explain why you fawn all over Alex then?" Blake smirked turning the tides on Yang. Yang gave an abashed look.

"I do not fawn!" she complained.

"No, you just throw yourself over him every time he shows up. I see the way you look at him; you can't hide this from me. Sure other guys hit on you and you flirt back for a while, but you always give up after a while."

"That's not true; I had perfectly good reasons to stop talking to them." Yang explained, gesturing with her right hand with her eyes closed.

"What about, Avery?"

"Too snobby."

"Jermaine?"

"Too clingy."

"Zachery?"

"Hey, he stopped talking to me." Yang pointed out holding a finger at Blake.

"Because you ridiculed him!" Blake snapped back.

"I didn't ridicule him; I was trying to have a conversation with him." Yang shot back.

"In the middle of a duel! You're supposed to take them seriously, chatting with him was just you showing off how easy it was to beat him, and when he showed off his Semblance, which by the way, was an incredible Semblance, you pummelled him into the ground!" Blake argued, reminding Yang of her actions. Yang placed a hand on her hip and smugly grinned.

"Well I wasn't going to let him show me up. Besides, my reputation was on the line." Yang informed her partner.

"With Alex though, it's been months and you're still all over him, clearly you're not getting sick of him any time soon." The raven haired girl explained. Yang sat, dejected on the bed.

"Is it really that obvious?" Blake responded with a nod. "I don't know why but I just get excited when I see him, and he's really hot. I know the other guys were cute but they seemed so…innocent." She added, for lack of a better word. "It's like they're all boys but he's a man. They still hold that youthful view of the world, like it's all an adventure with a happy ending." Yang's head was held low, her hair hung over her shoulder and her fringe covered her face, Blake knew better than to interrupt her partner so she stood, silent, and listened. "We know better though, we know that this world is unforgiving. He can see it too; I saw it in his eyes when I first met him. Did you know he saw his parents die right in front of him?"

"He also watched his team-mates perish as well." Blake added. Yang shook her head.

"Still, he's able to keep himself so well adjusted. When I see those eyes of his, I just want…Urgh I don't know; I'm not really good with this whole thing." Yang blurted out throwing her arms up in exasperation.

"You mean emotions?"

"Yeah, that's it!" Blake sat down on the bed next to her, "None of this matters anyway, I don't want to be with him anyway, not while Arras is there." She admitted.

"I know you don't like him but is that enough a reason to not date Alex?" Blake asked out of curiosity.

"Of course it is, Arras will be there, always watching and listening to everything me and Alex do, there'll be no privacy for us." Yang explained with a sigh.

"It's probably for the best, Alex will be leaving soon." Blake added, Yang sighed with a heavy heart and placed her head in Blake's chest. Blake instinctively began to stroke Yang's head.

"Why is it that the one guy I'm actually interested in, is the one guy I can't have." Yang asked, though she already knew the answer.

"You said yourself, this world is unforgiving." Blake simply answered. The door whooshed open and in jumped an over enthusiastic Ruby with a not so enthusiastic Weiss.

"We got it; we got it, we got it." Ruby chanted as she jumped around the room.

"What is she talking about?" Inquired Blake, Yang pulled away from Blake and stared at Ruby with a confused look.

Weiss held up a scroll, "We got it, our first proper mission. Search and destroy."

* * *

Alex darted around the arena landing punches and kicks on the multiple training dummies scattered around the area, he leapt high kicking one in the head, back-flipping clear before landing multiple punches on another. He leapt from dummy to dummy landing blow after blow upon any target within reach. His muscles screamed in agony being pushed beyond their limit, for hours Alex had kept this up, anyone else would have shattered knuckles and fractures in a dozen places, but carefully releasing bursts of his Semblance to heal damaged parts allowed him to turn an hour training session into four hours. He leapt clear of the training dummies, out of the thirty-eight dummies only twenty-three still stood.

"Alright Arras, you're up." Alex panted, releasing control Arras groaned as he took over the exhausted body.

"I've never used this much Semblance in such a short space, I'm not sure if it's even possible." Arras voiced his concern at the new technique he and Alex had talked about.

"_Relax Arras, the plan is solid, just rapid burst your Semblance in quick succession. Imagine your Semblance is like a tap, just open and close the tap rapidly, instant speed without burning through your Aura too fast. If it pays off you should land more hits in a shorter amount of time, only downside I see is with only a burst of aura you won't be able to travel very far, maybe a metre or two. Perfect for one target or multiple in close proximity." _Alex assured his other half.

Arras took a deep breath; his Aura began to swell within him. A warm sensation that flooded through his body, it began to pulsate within him matching the beat of his heart. The warm sensation soon became a burning one, Arras winced as his Aura grew too intense, and his skin began to scream in agony as if lava was being pumped through his veins. His Semblance became too much to hold back.

"Tempest Shift!" Arras yelled, unleashing his Semblance. To Alex who could merely see what was going on everything became a blur, he could hear the sounds of attacks hitting their targets, the sound of the wooden dummies smashing into pieces and the unmistakable sound of his own voice grunting in effort. As quickly as Arras launched his attack it was over, Arras panted heavily staring back at the carnage before him, the remaining dummies now lay in ruins, some smashed beyond all recognition. He keeled over collapsing to his knees, he stared down at his bare knuckles, they were broken and mangled, blood poured from the open wounds where bones stuck out.

"Oh shit Arras, give me control." Alex tried his best not to scream in agony as he took back the body, he quickly set to work healing his wounds. He watched as the green flames consumed his hands, when they vanished his hands were as good as new, no trace left of the torment they went through.

"Healing and speed, is everyone at Foresight just as weird as you?" A familiar voice came from behind Alex. He just smiled, recognising the voice.

"Would you be surprised if I told you there are far weirder at Foresight?" Alex asked the voice, Jaune sat down next to him.

"Nope, not in the slightest." Jaune leaned back onto his hands. The training Alex had subjected Jaune too had finally started to pay off, Alex focused more on training Jaune in sword play as well as strict training regime to beef him up a little. Gone was the scrawny, timid blonde haired man, now Jaune was a lot more bulkier, his shoulders were broader and his hoody that we was so fond of now had a hard time covering his defined muscular torso. It was a change that few could ignore, his increased talent in fighting landed him his first win in a duel and even though Jaune would deny it, a lot of girls were now staring at him when he walked passed. Alex realised that the key to improve Jaune was his confidence, he doubted himself and his abilities, it wasn't surprising then that when met with defeat in the art of ABBE that Jaune was on the brink of giving up. However with his new found confidence and self-esteem he tackled the training with increased vigour.

Alex slowly dragged himself to the arena wall, leaning against it, Jaune followed suit. "So what? No training today?" Jaune asked, he almost sounded a little pissed off.

"Sorry but I'm kind of beat here, maybe tomorrow." Alex panted.

"Seriously, not only am I finally getting the hang of my Dust blade, but yesterday we unlocked my Semblance and you want me to ignore that?" Jaune's tone was more than a little annoyed now. Alex figured that he'd be excited to test out his Semblance again; he never really got to use it yesterday. The coming days were going to be difficult for both Jaune and Alex. Jaune was no ordinary hunter; in fact he was a very rare breed. Jaune's Semblance was not something he could call on at any moment, in actuality it took a very specific trigger to set it off; this element could be anything, from an environmental effect such as moonlight to a specific emotion. In Jaune's case, it was a desire, specifically preservation, whether it was preservation for him or for other's Alex wasn't entirely sure, only more training would be able to determine that. These hunters were called Elementalists, extremely rare but usually incredibly powerful, fortunately for Jaune, Alex had some experience dealing with such a case. However Alex wasn't qualified to train such a hunter, he did know first-hand of an Elementalists power and what could go wrong. If too much Semblance is used it could cause extreme pain to the users body, as a result the mind naturally recedes back to protect the consciousness, leaving only base emotions in control of the body, the most prevalent one usually being anger, if Jaune wasn't careful he could lose himself to a blind rage. In truth Alex was glad for the excuse not to train, because he was afraid of Jaune.

"Look at me Jaune, I've been going at this for hours, and I'm shattered." Alex whined in defence. Jaune gave Alex a puzzled look.

"What is up with your body?" Jaune queried in a curious voice. Alex looked down at his bare chest, the training had got a bit too much for him so he had stripped off from the waist up in order to help cool him off.

"Get me a bottle of water and I'll tell you." Alex bargained, Jaune merely smiled pulling a bottle out from a brown bag he had brought with him.

"I figured you'd need one so I came prepared." Alex thanked him profusely before chugging half of the cold liquid into his exhausted body; he gave a satisfied gulp before pouring some over his head, drenching his hair.

"They're scars." Alex answered taking another swig from the bottle. Jaune shifted away from Alex to avoid the puddle of water collecting on the floor, he stared at his torso, Alex had a muscular build, but not from heavy training like most subject themselves too, his body was muscular yet sleek, skinny yet toned. His torso however was a battlefield of scars, cuts across his chest, small circular marks perfectly spaced from one another and a large scar stretching around his waist.

"I thought most scars heal, it's rare to see someone with one scar, let alone dozens." Jaune queried as he continued to stare.

"Take a picture, it lasts longer." Alex mocked. "Besides, no one really knows why some scars heal and others don't, my guess, is that on some sub-conscious level we want the scars to remain. Maybe to remind us of a mistake we made or perhaps to remember a friend we lost in battle. Either way, these ones stay, and others don't." Alex finished, taking another swig.

"I take it there's a story behind each one?" Jaune curiously asked. Alex merely stared back.

"Stories for another time, I'm glad you're here by the way, I had a question to ask you."

"Shoot." Jaune replied.

"What's everyone's, you know, deal?" Alex asked the young knight vaguely. Jaune gave him a puzzled look.

"What do you mean?"

"You know, a school full of rowdy teenagers, there's got to be some fooling around going on. What about Ren and Nora?" Alex finally made his question clear.

"Oooh, well they're not, 'together' together. As for couples, I mean, you heard about Ruby and Weiss right?" Alex's eyes widened tenfold, his jaw hung open and he dropped his bottle of water. Jaune tried his best to keep a straight face, however his hysterics got the better of him and he crumpled into a pile of laughter and tears. Alex stared blankly at Jaune as he rolled on the floor laughing.

"You're joking aren't you? God dammit you had me there!" Alex barked punching Jaune in the arm.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry I couldn't resist." Jaune spluttered out trying to calm himself down. Jaune composed himself and sat back up. "I take it you want to know about Yang?" Alex looked back at him.

"That obvious huh?"

"Well there's been chatter amongst some friends, a lot of guys have tried for Yang, but none get close. She's different with you though, you guys are cool together, even if you did beat the crap out of one another." Jaune joked smiling to himself.

"I just, I don't know what it is, she's just so…"

"I think the word you're looking for is 'terrifying'" the knight mocked. Alex gave him another punch to the arm.

"Ow, same place." Jaune winced rubbing his upper arm. "Anyway, you two are cool; I hope it works out for you." Jaune sounded sincere, and Alex gave him a warm smile.

"Yeah well I haven't had much of an excuse to see her."

"You don't need an excuse, just go see her because you want to, I'm sure she wants to see you. Look, you're getting dating advice from me, that's how obvious this is." Jaune pointed out, mocking himself. Alex gave a short laugh.

"Guess you make a point."

"In any case we just got a mission, I'm sure RWBY got one too, maybe you can lend them a hand." Jaune informed the bare chested hunter.

"What kind of mission?" he queried.

"We're getting sent all across Remnant for search and destroy ops. Big stuff, I and the rest of Juniper are excited. Though it means no training for the next week, we gotta prep for desert ops." Jaune beamed.

"Do you know where RWBY is getting sent to?"

"Ruby said something about a rainforest, Eternity Forest I think she said."

Alex's eyes lit up.

* * *

Within moments the floor of the girl's dorm was littered with all manner of texts and books. Weiss was busy laying them out whilst Ruby and Blake perused some of them. Yang still lay on the bed staring at the scene before her begrudgingly. She was snapped back to reality as Weiss thrust a book under her nose.

"Here! Read this." The heiress commanded.

"But books? Why don't you guys read them and you can just fill me in on the important parts?" Yang whined trying to con her way out of studying.

"You need to study just as much as the rest of us, if not for yourself then do it for us, and if that doesn't work do it for Ruby." Weiss stood resolute, the book still held under Yang's nose. Yang swiped the book out of her hand and glared back, she moved from the bed onto the floor and flipped open the book. The four girls quietly read separate books occasionally voicing an important piece of information, all the while Weiss took notes of anything remotely useful to their mission.

The girls were snapped out of their focus by a knock at the door. "I'll get it!" exclaimed Ruby as she bolted upright hopping over Weiss to get to the door first. Ruby stared blankly as she opened the door; a pile of books blocked her view.

"I…can't hold it!" grunted a voice from the other side of the books, without warning the books fell forward crushing the unsuspecting Ruby. The girls stared shocked at Alex who stared back with a look of guilt.

"I didn't do it!" he quickly snapped. A lone hand emerged from the pile of books.

"I'm okay!" a muffled voice called in a cheery tone.

"What are you doing here?" Asked Yang in a confused tone, whilst Weiss freed Ruby from her leatherback tomb. Alex nervously rubbed the back of his neck giving the sheepish grin.

"Someone may have let slip that you were heading into a rainforest for a search and destroy mission, I wanted to help you." He informed them.

"Just to help us?" Weiss asked accusingly.

"And maybe, join you?" Admitted Alex, giving them a boyish grin. The girls all looked between themselves. "Look, my help will be invaluable. When you join Foresight without any training from a combat school you have to go through a brutal three month initiation just to enter. You're abandoned in a deserted location with nothing but the clothes on your back, if you're still there, and alive, when they come to get you at the end of the three months you pass. Any guess where my initiation took place?" Yang's arm immediately shot into the air.

"Oh, oh I know!" she beamed enthusiastically. Weiss rolled her eyes at her teammate.

"You know this isn't a class, you don't need to raise your hand."

"Shut it you!" barked Yang. "It was a rainforest, which explains your love for green clothing; it's homage to your initiation."

"I'm surprised you know what 'homage' means." Weiss mocked. Yang stuck her tongue out at her teammate.

"You nailed it, and the extra bonus is, the Eternity Forest is where my training took place, I doubt there's few that no that place better than me." He informed them as he picked up one of the hefty books from the floor, "And this is the only text you need to survive." He handed it to Weiss.

"_Remnant: Beautiful and Deadly _by _Arthur Pyxis." _Weiss raised an eyebrow, "This wasn't in the survivability section of the library." She pointed out.

"Yeah I don't know whose bright idea it was but the book was catalogued under _Documentation_, never-the-less check out the acknowledgements." Weiss opened the book to the first page, the girls all gathered around her. Weiss quickly skimmed through its many contributors until she spotted one at the bottom.

"And lastly thank you Alexander Cross, may I never see you again?" Weiss asked, confused as to what it meant. Everyone stared at the young hunter, who gave a cheesy grin and shrugged.

"During one of our missions into the rainforest we were set on by Talonflies, large wasp looking creatures. During the chaos one was about to skewer Arthur from behind, reacting on instinct I fired an arrow; however the arrow may have skimmed his ass cheeks on the way passed. Look, I saved his life and healed the damage, except, I couldn't repair the nerve endings. Poor Arthur couldn't sit down properly for a week." Alex finished explaining, the two sisters were trying to stifle their laughs.

"Oh will you two just grow up." Weiss chastised them both.

"I have no doubt you guys can handle yourselves out there, but surely my help couldn't hurt right?" Alex stared at the girls, who shared glances between one another.

After tidying up the mess of books everyone was back down on the floor studying the book Alex had brought for them. "Right, first things first and I imagine this is pretty obvious, but the Grimm in rainforests are unique to their habitat, expect a lot of flying types and those with, many, many legs." Alex gave a shudder as a chill ran down his spine. Yang grinned at him.

"Take it you're not a fan huh?"

"I hate spiders!" he answered through gritted teeth. "Moving on, the flora is just as deadly. A rule of thumb I like to live by is, the more beautiful the plant is the deadlier it is. Whilst most poison our Aura's can deal with there are a few that will kill you in seconds. So, Ruby, no running off and picking up flowers cause they're pretty."

"What! I wouldn't do that!" the young girl protested. Everyone stared at her with blank expressions. Ruby sighed and hung her head. "It's not my fault the flowers are pretty." She whimpered under her breath.

"Needless to say, dangerous flora mean minimum bare flesh showing, so Weiss, Ruby, no combat skirts for you two. Yang you're gonna have to put on some actual pants and sorry Blake but leggings won't cut it."

* * *

The next few days went by in a blur as Alex and team RWBY planned their mission into the Eternity Forest. He would have liked to have spent most of his time with Yang but unfortunately had to spend it with Weiss designing the new outfits suitable for the new environment. Weiss informed him numerous times that fabricating the new outfits shouldn't be a problem, being the heiress to the wealthiest company in the world tends to have perks like that. Two days before the mission, Alex and Weiss were alone in team RWBYs dorm late one evening, both were crouched on the floor with the designs drawn on their scrolls passing them between each other as they both made modifications. Alex was tweaking the outfits to show minimum bare flesh and maximum protection; however he also had to take in their different traits and attributes, for example Blake preferred to be light on her feet so he started off with a simple light Kevlar outfit that covered her from neck to toe but was lightweight enough for her to keep agile. Weiss was handling the more finer details of the outfits, pockets, harness', sheathes, all the small subtle things that would be invaluable to them. Between the two of them over the past few days they were almost complete with the final designs, only Ruby's outfit remained. Weiss handed Alex her scroll containing the revised outfit and he noticed a large addition had been made to the outfit, Ruby's signature red cloak was added to the back of it. Alex stared at it for a while, it was hardly a practical add-on, something like could be a hindrance to Ruby especially in a rainforest.

"You do realise that something like this could cause complications, I mean, I don't want to sugar coat this, this could cost her, her life." Alex pointed out.

"Ruby is skilled enough not to let something like that happen." Weiss informed him.

"So her cape has never once put her in danger?" he asked, Weiss went suspiciously silent as her mind wandered to their first encounter with a Nevermore.

"No…besides she wouldn't be happy if she couldn't wear it, she'll love that it's part of the outfit." Weiss explained, her face was bright as if she was excited by the idea of surprising Ruby.

"You care about Ruby don't you?" Alex inquired.

"Of course I do!" snapped Weiss, "She's my friend and her happiness is important to me, the cloak stays." Alex stared at the girl confidently; the lone lamp in the room illuminated her features.

"That sounds like a bit more than friendship to me."

"What are you talking about?" Weiss asked, staring at him.

"I'm just saying, there's nothing wrong if you want to be more than friends." Weiss' face turned several shades of red, her mouth hung wide open.

"I…I…I don't know where you got that idea from!" Weiss snapped, her body visibly trembling.

Alex calmly stared at the girl and raised his scroll, "Really? Cause we finished everyone's outfits hours ago yet here we are, fumbling with Ruby's outfit. It's not even 'we' it's more you with me waiting for you to be done."

"I do not have feelings for her!" yelled Weiss shattering her usual calm and collectiveness, startling Alex.

Suddenly he felt like he may have crossed the line, he quickly raised his hands defensively. "OK, OK, you don't have feelings for her, forget I said anything." They both returned their gaze to the scrolls but now the air between them was too tense. Minutes passed in silence, Alex was beginning to think that maybe he should leave. He was about to get to his feet when Weiss slammed her scroll onto the floor.

"Even if I did have those kinds of feelings for her, which I don't, what would I even say?" she asked, her focus still on the scroll, her snow white fringe shielding her eyes. Alex blinked in dis-belief at the outburst, but his confusion soon turned to a warm smile. It was obvious the feelings were there; he didn't miss the mark by a mile but was dead on. His smile soon turned to a frown; he felt a great deal of sadness for the girl. Her protesting to her feelings before told him that she was having trouble dealing with them, maybe she's never told anyone, seems unlikely she has. How long has she been like this, alone with these confusing emotions and no-one to talk to.

"Tell her the truth." He finally answered. Weiss scoffed, her fringe swayed as she did.

"Easier said than done."

"Weiss, I guessed that there was something between the two of you and I've only been here for a little more than a month, if I pegged you like Ruby in such a short amount of time, then Ruby surely knows herself."

"If she knows then why hasn't she done anything?" she countered.

"Done anything?" Alex asked in dis-belief, "Weiss she follows you everywhere you go, It's a miracle she's even given us this long alone. I wouldn't be surprised if she's been waiting patiently outside the door. I'm gonna be an ass here but you can be hard to tolerate sometimes, but Ruby? She stays by your side no matter what. Also what if she's having the same problems admitting the truth like you are? One of you might need to take that leap to get the ball rolling." Weiss had now got to her feet and was stood by the window looking out into the clear night.

"It's never as simple as that, especially with someone like me." Weiss' voice was small, almost like she was speaking her thoughts aloud rather than addressing Alex. He got to his feet and stood across the room from her leaning against the wall.

"You like her, she likes you, and I'm not seeing the issue here." Weiss let out a long sigh. She straightened her back and spun perfectly on her heel, her posture was perfect, a clear sign of her station in life.

"Who am I?" she asked simply. Alex gave her a hard stare, before straightening himself.

"You are Weiss Schnee, daughter of Nicolas Schnee and second in line to the Schnee Dust Company, the largest producers and exporters of Dust in all of Remnant." He answered.

"And what do you think the media will say when they learn that I have a lesbian lover?" Alex stared blankly for a moment.

"Is that really what the issue is here? You're worried what people might think?" he snapped, angry that she would care about such a trivial thing.

"My father has tried to control every aspect of my life; he had my entire life planned out for me before I was the age of eight. In that plan I was to marry a wealthy business man's son, he wanted a grandchild to carry on the Schnee name, if I do this I won't be able to give him what he wants. If he learned of this he would…" Weiss trailed off, "He would never allow this, my father is very…controlling, I could not, will not, put Ruby through such a thing."

Alex leaned back on the wall, "That bad huh?"

"He wanted me to work for the company like my sister, naturally I refused, I refused to live a life that was no longer in my control. So I told him I wanted to become a huntress. Of course, that plan backfired; turns out he was happy with my decision, something about an accomplished huntress being good publicity for the name. I was to join Foresight at his request; angry, I lashed out and opted for Beacon instead. He wasn't happy about that which only solidified my decision." Weiss' fists were clenched tight; she let a small nervous chuckle escape her lips. "And that's why I'm here, just to get back at my father." She shook her head.

"It already sounds like you don't care much of what he thinks, so why care now?"

"I'm not concerned about what he'll think, I'm afraid of what he'll do when he finds out." Weiss explained. Alex nodded his understanding, though he was unsure of the prejudice behind homosexuality. If a lesbian daughter was frowned upon by the media then that would cause problems for the company, a fact her father would not abide by.

"How far would he go?" he asked bluntly.

"Extortion, blackmail, bribe, murder, the list goes on." She answered nonchalantly as if she'd seen it happen before.

"You'd think he'd go so far as to murder Ruby?" Alex asked in dis-belief.

"Not him personally but someone else would do the deed."

Alex rubbed his eyes, "Geez, listen to yourself Weiss, do you know how ridiculous this sounds?"

"It only sounds that way because you don't know my father. Every time someone claimed they had information of my father's questionable business practices that evidence would mysteriously vanish, along with whoever held it." She pointed out. Alex sighed in resignation, before giving her a nod.

"So what if there was a way to make him accept it?" those words caused Weiss to stare at him in shock.

"You really think you could convince my father?" she asked, not quite believing what she was hearing.

"Of course, the answer is exceptionally simple. Your dad's a businessman, so we approach this as a business deal. We give him something he wants and in return he lets you date Ruby."

Weiss shook her head. "I can't believe I told you I had feelings for her, please don't tell anyone." She asked of him, Alex gave her a knowing grin.

"You could always order me not to tell anyone." He explained.

Weiss stamped her foot, "I would never do that!"

"So you know of Foresight's mandate when it comes to Schnee family members?" Weiss responded with a nod. "You know a lot more about Foresight than you let on. I'm surprised you haven't told the others what you know."

"What's the point, it makes no difference if they knew or not. Besides I don't need them knowing of another perk of the family name. It's bad enough as it is with what they already know. Look, are you gonna tell me this plan of yours or not?" Weiss asked, growing impatient.

"I was but now I'm confused. The plan was for you to go to Foresight, which is what he wants. In return you get to date Ruby. But if I remember correctly you asked to become a candidate for Foresight, you already planned on joining." He pointed out; Weiss nodded and stared back out of the window.

"I always wanted to join Foresight, but I never wanted to go there on my father's wishes. I know it sounds childish, my plan was to graduate from here then attend Foresight." She explained.

"Looks like you'll have to bump your plans forward if you plan on making this deal work."

"Your deal sounds counterproductive though." She turned to face Alex as she spoke, "Joining Foresight means leaving Ruby behind, that's not what I want."

"Then bring Ruby with you, hell, bring the entire team!" Alex' face burst into a wide grin as he was overcome with excitement, "That would be so awesome if you guys did, we could go on joint ops together and you guys could meet my team. Watch out for Zinear though, he can be a bit of a womanizer, but you'll love Raz and Ash!"

Weiss held up her hands, "Slow down there, we're not even passed the first hurdle. Besides even if my father does go for this deal we still have another big problem." She informed him.

Alex scoffed. "A bigger problem than your dodgy psycho dad?" Alex mocked in a sarcastic tone.

"Yang."

Alex's face became serious, "Oh, yeah, right, Yang's gonna flip if she finds out you're dating Ruby."

"I see a funeral very soon in my future if she does." Weiss spoke in a serious tone, Alex couldn't tell if she was joking or not.

"Maybe she'll take it better than we think. Especially if Ruby talks to her, maybe we should just have faith in that." Weiss wasn't entirely convinced, but if Ruby really did feel the same way then she was sure Ruby could convince Yang not to at least murder her. Alex burst into laughter, causing Weiss to jump.

"What? What's so funny?" she snapped, she assumed that Alex was laughing at her.

"Sorry, it's just, most couples worry about whether it will work out or plans for the future. You're worries involve your father killing Ruby and Yang killing you. You guys got it rough, no doubt about that." Alex finished with an added chuckle.

"That's it, I'm done!" Weiss snapped as she sat on her bed and removed her scroll.

"What are you doing?" Alex asked, confused.

"We've finished the outfits; I'm calling the engineering department to get them manufactured."

Alex stared at his own scroll that was strapped to his wrist, "At this time, are you sure it wouldn't be better to wait till the morning?" Weiss waved him off.

"The engineering department runs twenty-four hours a day and they'll always make time for a Schnee." Her voice couldn't help but have the slightest tone of smugness.

Alex sighed, "Then I'll leave you to It." he made his way over to the door, he was about to swipe his card but froze. "Weiss?" the pale girl looked up at him from her scroll, Alex stared at the door, "One day you will die, I know it's a harrowing thought but it's one we all must accept. If you're lucky enough to have a few moments to look back on your life before you leave this world there are two things you will think on, the times you loved and the times you regret. If you did date Ruby, would you love it, or regret it?" before the young girl had time to respond Alex swiped his card and left the room.

The pale girl stared at the door; she gave a warm smile, "Thank you, Alex."

Once on the other side of the door Alex gave out a long sigh, "It feels good to do something nice." He spoke aloud at the emptiness of the corridor.

"_You know, until Weiss' father kills Ruby then Yang offs Weiss." _Arras chastised his partner.

"Can you not let me have this moment, why you gotta be such a downer?" Alex retorted as he began to make his way back to his room.

"Alex!" a voice called from behind, he turned to see Ruby running over to him.

"Sup Red?" he greeted as she got close. She stopped and gave him a quizzical look.

"Red? Please don't call me that."

"Alright fine, that's the last time I try and act cool." Alex joked, "So what's up?"

"I take it you're heading back to your room?" Alex nodded his answer, "So I take it that means the outfits are done?" Alex held up his hands, clearly knowing where the line of thought was going.

"Don't even try it Red, Weiss told me not to tell you anything, you're gonna have to wait like everyone else." He scorned her like a strict parent. Ruby naturally pouted.

"Way to be a buzzkill, and didn't I tell you to stop calling me Red!" she cried.

"I'm cool goddammit and I'm keeping the nickname!" he argued, crossing his arms across his chest. Ruby stamped her foot on the ground.

"Fine, then I'm just gonna call you Green from now on!"

"Fine!" he snapped.

"Fine!" she yelled back. The pair leaned in closer glaring at each other.

"Shouldn't you go bother Weiss?" he countered.

"What, you mean like how you've been bothering her these past few days?" Ruby shot back satisfied with her come-back.

"Ha, someone's jealous that I got Weiss all to myself." He countered with a smug smile on his face.

Ruby's face blushed, "Wha…why would I be jealous?"

"Cause you have feelings for her of course." Alex answered calmly, as if he was commenting on the weather. Ruby's face when several shades of red as she stood there gobsmacked.

"I…I…I" the young girl stuttered.

"Oh please it's obvious as hell, why don't you go in there in tell her how you feel." Alex leaned in close, "Or I'll go in there and do it for you." He threatened. Ruby's face grew serious.

"I don't know what's gotten into you Green, but don't you dare tell her, besides," her features grew soft and she looked away almost embarrassed, "She doesn't feel the same way."

Alex gently grabbed her chin and turned her head to face him, their silver eyes pierced each other, "Doesn't she?" before Ruby had a chance to respond Alex straightened himself and walked down the corridor, turning the corner and vanishing from sight.

"What's that supposed to mean!" she yelled after him, "It's not cool to just leave a loaded question like that?" she sighed in frustration.

Alex smugly strolled down the brightly lit corridors; a few students passed him chattering away. "I said it before and I'll say it again, damn it feels good to do something nice."

"_This whole 'get the last word in then leave before they have a chance to respond' isn't gonna become a habit is it? Cause if so it's gonna get real tiring, real fast." _Arras mocked.

"Shut it you!" snapped Alex.

"_Yes Sir!" _replied Arras, sarcastically.

* * *

Ruby stood at the dorms door, her eyes glued to the card scanner and Alex's final words to her ringing in her mind.

"He wouldn't joke about something like that would he?" she mused aloud. "No, of course not. He knows that this is serious stuff. Maybe…maybe Weiss said something to him?" at that thought her eyes lit up. "Of course, the time they've spent together, I bet Alex pegged her with the same accusations as he did me. So then that means…" without a second thought Ruby swiped her card and she quickly stepped into the room. Weiss was stood by the window, she closed her scroll, just finishing her phone call and turned to face Ruby. The young red haired girl had entered the room with such confidence but the mere sight of Weiss had sapped it away and her legs turned to jelly beneath her.

"You're back early." Weiss mused as she glanced at her scroll, "I wasn't expecting you or the others back for another hour, did you finish your revision?"

"I…don't know." Ruby answered hesitantly.

"You don't know, if you have finished your revision or not?" Weiss sighed, "You can be such a dunc-"

"I spoke to Alex!" Ruby blurted out. This caught Weiss off guard who immediately blushed; her face became a mix of shock and fear.

"What…did he say to you?" the heiress asked, fearing the answer but needing to know. Ruby's nerves got the better of her and she bit her tongue.

"He told me you had finished the outfits." Ruby answered, not quite having the courage to tell her everything just yet. Weiss sighed in relief.

"That's right, in fact I just placed the order, if a Schnee name holds as much weight as it should, the outfits should be here within two day, if not sooner." She added with a small smile. That small smile overwhelmed Ruby with emotions. To her Weiss was perfect, she was completely head over heels for her. Weiss could be cold, but she was also smart, graceful and incredibly talented. Ruby wasn't afraid of what other people thought, she didn't care if they judged her, or them as a couple. All she feared was Weiss rejecting her and losing her friendship.

"It's a shame she doesn't feel the same way." Ruby sadly thought inwardly.

"_Doesn't she?" _Rang a familiar voice. Ruby's eyes perked up, she took a confident step forward, almost startling Weiss.

"He also said something about you." Ruby admitted, Weiss' face became crimson.

"He…did?" she stammered.

Ruby nodded confidently, "Is there something you want to tell me?" Ruby asked, she wanted to hear it, hear it from her beautiful lips. Ruby's eyes danced with excitement and Weiss could clearly tell that she knew.

Weiss stamped her foot, "God damn that moron!" she bellowed scaring Ruby; "He couldn't leave well enough alone could he! Alright fine, I do have something to say to you. I can't stand you, you're reckless and headstrong. You're clumsy and childish." Ruby's heart almost stopped in her chest, it suddenly became harder to breathe and though she tried to will herself not to she couldn't stop her eyes from watering. She was expecting a declaration of love; her hopes were so high to just have them crushed. Of course there was no happy ending for her. This was a sick joke played on her by Alex, she was sure he was probably laughing at her right now. How could she be so stupid?

"…and you're immature. But…" that last word caught Ruby's attention; she stared up at Weiss through watery eyes. "I can't stop thinking about you. When we go to class I make sure to be sat next to you. When I'm in bed and you're up late I can't sleep till I know you're back in the dorm safe, even then my final thoughts are of you, I dream of you and when I wake you're the first thing I think about. Why do I feel this way, why does a brat like you drive me crazy in love?" Weiss stamped furiously, "Damnit Ruby just don't stand there, say something, anything!" she pleaded. Ruby stared, awe-struck by Weiss; everything she dreamed about was coming true. She just witnessed the girl she loved secretly for over a year; admit she felt the same way. Words could not express the overwhelming happiness and euphoria that flooded through the young leaders veins.

"_Do something you idiot!" _her mind snapped. Without thinking, without over-analysing the situation Ruby took a step forward. Weiss stepped back hesitantly, she felt herself get pinned against the windowsill as Ruby continued to advance.

"Wha…what are you doing?" she hesitantly asked the young girl, her voice wavered. Without a word Ruby gently placed her hands either side of Weiss' face and pulled her lips towards hers.

* * *

Alex stared at the bulldog that was idle on one of Beacons numerous landing pads. The blistering heat of the morning sun beat down on him, even the breeze was warm and the air humid. Today was the day of the mission, in twenty minutes he and the members of team RWBY would be boarding that very Bulldog and set off across continents to the Eternity Forest.

"Of course we would be taking an airship, how did I not see this coming?" he ridiculed himself.

"_Well only morons would cross continents by land and sea." _Arras pointed out,_ "Kinda like us." _He added.

He stared at the scroll attached to his left forearm, "They're taking their sweet time." He complained aloud, looking around the campus. He stood alone on the far edge of Beacons grounds. "Then again I imagine they're faffing around with the new outfits. Here's hoping they've arrived." Weiss was furious when the outfits never came yesterday, Alex would have stayed and listened to her rant, however he spent most of his final day studying in the library, whilst the girls crammed in whatever studying or training they could squeeze in.

"_Looks like they're here, I'm sensing four Auras approaching us." _Arras informed him. Alex spun on his heels to spot the four girls strolling up to him. Alex gave a wide grin; even from this distance the outfits looked incredible. Ruby's crimson cape blew gently in the wind, with the red hood pulled up shielding her from the rays. Her torso was covered with a tight-fitting, black jacket with dark brown armour pads covering her elbows, shoulders and chest. A small utility belt was strapped around her waist. Even though Alex warned them about combat skirts Weiss somehow managed to keep them in the design. Ruby wore a black skirt with red trimming; she wore tight black leggings that were made of a special weave to protect her. She wore heavy duty black boots with red frills at the top and black fingerless gloves.

Weiss wore a looser fitting white jacket though it was held in place by a dark blue combat vest which covered most of her torso; she also had elbow pads of similar colour and the fingerless gloves. Her legs were covered in thick white trousers with dark blue knee pads and heavy duty boots. Though it absolutely wasn't necessary she also wore a white skirt for no other reason than 'because she wanted to'.

Blake's outfit was the most revealing of the four. She wore a dark grey jacket; the sleeves though had been rolled up passed the elbow, her forearms wrapped in her trademark black ribbon. Her midriff was covered by armour which housed dozens of small pockets and pouches. She also wore a black scarf and fingerless gloves. Her lower region was covered with dark grey shorts and her legs by her familiar black and purple leggings, though these were made of the same material as Ruby's, along with black knee pads and the black boots.

Surprisingly Yang's outfit was the most covered. She wore a dark orange jacket with dark brown armour pads covering her forearms, elbows, biceps and chest. Her emblem was embroided onto her left breast. She wore the obvious fingerless gloves which Alex gave to everyone as well as her orange scarf and aviator shades. While her jacket was tucked in at the front it flowed down to her knees at the back as well as her white under layer she always has. Her legs were covered in dark orange combat trousers along with the armour knee pads and black boots. She also had a small black scarf tied around her left leg.

The four girls reached Alex and Weiss held out her hands gesturing to the team. "Well what do you think?" she asked, obviously pleased with the work.

"Do you want my friendly answer or my serious answer?" he countered, the girls looked at each other.

"Friendly answer." Weiss responded. Alex threw his arms into the air over enthusiastically.

"Why I just love them, they are incredible!" the girls groaned at Alex's obvious sarcastic response.

"Alright no need to be an ass about it, what's the serious answer?" asked Weiss.

"Why leggings and not actual combat trousers?" he gesture to both Blake and Ruby. "You're skirt looks ridiculous," he added to Weiss, "And what the hell is this?" he asked as he grabbed a hold of Ruby's cape, "I know you said Ruby would love it but I didn't think you'd actually keep it in the plan?" Yang strode forward and threw an arm around Alex's shoulders.

"Did you notice he never complained about my outfit?" she asked rhetorically in a smug tone. Alex stared down at her jacket, the first few buttons were undone exposing her cleavage. He stuck his index finger into the opening and tugged on the jacket.

"What's this then, you planning on seducing the Grimm?" he asked, mockingly.

"There's no amount of clothes that could contain these bad boys." She responded, slapping Alex's hand away.

"A fact we are all painfully aware of." Joked Blake, Yang shot a tongue out at her partner before turning to Ruby.

"So are you gonna give it to him already?" asked Yang impatiently. Alex looked between the two girls with a confused look. Ruby stepped forward. Alex had only just noticed now that Ruby's hands had not moved from behind her back, as she withdrew them she handed Alex an item of clothing. He took it hesitantly, Ruby removed her hands and the jacket unfurled. It was a green, long-sleeved, leather trench coat, with a large overhang that looked like it would come down to the back of his knees. Weiss took the jacket from his hands.

"Go on, try it on." She ordered. Not needing telling twice Alex unclipped the black harness around his shoulders and removed his swords and quivers. Taking the jacket back, he slid it on. It was a snug fit and Alex couldn't help but smile at how well it went with the rest of his outfit. It had a single clasp at the front, tightening it around his chest, the coat pulled back at his lower half. He picked up his harness and fitted the weapons back onto his back. He reached over his head to grab the blades and gave a satisfied grunt, however when he reached around to grab an arrow he gave a look of frustration.

"Something wrong?" asked Weiss concernedly.

"The jacket is a bit tight around the under-arm, I'm fine reaching for my blades but I have trouble getting the arrows." He answered as he tried one more time to reach them. Weiss looked so embarrassed, she couldn't believe she made an error on Alex' gift, her face went bright red. Alex took one look at her and his hands shot up.

"No, no it's fine, I have an idea." He spoke as he released the clasp on the harness; the quivers fell to the floor with a soft thud. Alex retrieved them and hooked the top of each to his belt, his regular arrows nestled against his right leg while his custom arrows were against his left, the coat pulled back around the quivers. "There!" he announced as he looked down at his new look. He quickly removed his blades, attached them to become a staff and drew an arrow all in a flash. "Better yet, I think it might be easier for me to have the quivers down here, easier to reach."

"Oh thank god." Weiss sighed in relief.

"What's the occasion?" he inquired.

"A small thank you for your advice the other day." She added with a warm smile. Yang looked between them confused.

"What advice?"

"Alright!" bellowed the red haired leader, quickly changing the subject, "Everyone on board!" The team marched towards the Bulldog, well, everyone except Alex who sheathed his weapons and stared at the aerial contraption.

"The thing doesn't even have any windows." He complained.

"_Just get on the damn thing before everyone finds out how much of a pussy you are!" _snapped Arras, clearly sick of Alex' attitude. Alex scoffed before begrudgingly boarding the jet; he immediately sat down next to the side door, but mumbled something under his breath when the door sealed close trapping him inside. The pilot yelled something but Alex tightly sealed his eyes closed and tried to pretend he was somewhere else. The twin engines roared into life, shaking the fuselage as the jet roared into the air and off towards their destination. A few minutes passed, or at least Alex hoped a few minutes passed when someone gently shook his shoulder, his eyes snapped open to find the team standing, holding onto the hand rails on the ceiling, staring at him.

"Hey, I asked you if you spoke to Ozpin about joining us." Yang repeated as she and the team stared at Alex with a look of concern.

"What…oh yeah I did." He quickly answered. The steel walls looked confining, with the partition between them and the cockpit sealed they may as well have been in a steel box of death.

"What did he say about you tagging along?" added Ruby.

"Well he wasn't gonna budge for a while, but I am here to look for new Foresight members, so observing candidates during a mission will be invaluable." He answered, he found the conversation to be distracting and so he eased up a little.

"Well, that's fair enough, but none of us are candidates." Ruby pointed out, a smile on her face, as if Alex had said something silly. Alex gave the briefest of glances towards Weiss before returning the smile.

"Maybe I secretly want you all to come to Foresight, see the sights and meet my team." He added in a cheery tone.

"Meet three other unbearable guys, no thanks." Mocked Yang with a devilish grin.

"So you think I'm unbearable, wait till you meet Zinear, you'll change your tune then." Alex added smugly.

"Who would I like the most?" added Ruby enthusiastically.

"Hmm, probably Ashton, you remind me a lot of him, small, hyper, he has a thing for cakes too, goes nuts over them."

"Like I do with cookies!" Ruby bellowed excitedly.

"I pray those two never meet." Added Weiss grudgingly.

"Well Ozpin was not without his warning, if I interfere with your mission in any way he'll ship me back to Foresight and you'll never see me again." He added glumly. The girls gave a worried look.

"Well don't worry, just sit back and enjoy the show." Beamed Ruby clenching her fist.

"Yeah, this mission is as good as done." Added Yang, inspired by Ruby's positive outlook, he gave them both a warm smile.

"Any idea how long it will take to get there?" his question seemed innocent, though Alex hid the fact that his fear was starting to creep back and knowing just how long he'd have to endure it might help. Ruby gave a shrug at his question and knocked on the partition between them and the pilot. It opened suddenly and the pilot, dressed in bright white pilots garb and a helmet that covered their face, peered in and gave one look at Ruby.

"No, we are not stopping for a toilet break, you should have gone before we left." Snapped the pilot, it was a distinct female voice and already Alex didn't like her attitude.

"Erm, no, that's not what I wanted to ask, we were just curious as to how long we'll be?" she asked timidly, clearly being put off by the pilot's remark.

"Well if your baby bladder holds out, no longer than half an hour."

"HALF AN HOUR!" bellowed Alex startling everyone; he stared at everyone in shock.

"What is that too long?" asked Yang.

"What, no. That's amazing; I thought it'd be hours." He admitted his tone still full of surprise.

"Well you see we're in this amazing thing called and airship; it has the ability to fly in a straight line." Mocked the pilot from her seat.

Blake gave Alex a confused look, "Why are you surprised, clearly you know how long it should take seeing as you came to Beacon from Foresight by airship."

Alex fumbled slightly avoiding eye contact, "You did take an airship, didn't you?" Yang pried, leaning into his view so that he was forced to look at her.

"The truth is…I didn't." there was a stunned silence. "I travelled mostly on foot, the occasional car or bus and one boat."

"Why not take an airship and save yourself all the hassle." Weiss asked, her tone was agitated.

"Because I was afraid." Admitted the young hunter, ashamed of himself.

"Afraid of flying?" inquired Blake.

"No, I have no trouble with heights or falling. I'm…I'm afraid of airships." The airship erupted in laughter, everyone glared at the pilot who was laughing hysterically. Alex gritted his teeth. "Shut your damn mouth before I shut it for you!" he threatened rising from his seat, his anger momentarily causing him to forget his fear.

"I'm sorry, well, no I'm not sorry but, really, a fear of airships? You're a hunter, you fight Grimm and risk your life every day, yet you cower at an airship, it sounds so pathetic." The pilot bellowed between fits of laughter.

"You're right, I do risk my life every day. If I was a true coward I would have chosen another profession, like being a pilot." That shut the pilot up, she glared back at him.

"How about you come up here and say that to my face." She retorted in anger, Alex clearly got under her skin.

"Fine, open the door before I do then." His come-back caused the pilot to tilt her head questioningly "So that way once I cut your throat I can bail from this jet before it hits the ground." He finished with a smug grin.

"Fine," the pilot spoke, a small grin of her own crept across her lips, the door swung open and everyone braced themselves as a huge surge of air blasted into the fuselage, the team stared out of the door, below them for miles around was nothing but ocean. "Go ahead and jump, we'll see how long you last out there." The pilot yelled over the wind, clearly smug that she had got the last jab in. Alex glared at the watery blue below, he moved back over to his seat and sat down.

"Maybe another time." He spat, folding his arms across his chest.

"That's what I thought." The door to the jet sealed shut and they continued towards their destination. Minutes passed in silence and once again Alex's fear battered at his mind desperate to overwhelm him. "Hey, check it out." Called the pilot as she opened the door, another rush of air surged in and the team stood grasping onto the rails. After a moment the wind died down and the five of them gawped at the scene before them. Forest stretched for miles and miles reaching into the horizon, the beautiful green foliage of the Eternity Forest beckoned Alex like a beacon in the night, a thin lair of fog lay over the foliage like a plastic film.

"No wonder they call it the Eternity Forest." Yang spoke in dis-belief. "Finding our way through it is going to be next to impossible, we'll get lost for sure."

"Just remember your studies and everyone will be fine." Alex affirmed as he stared out across the green tree tops.

"We're approaching our first drop point, Ruby Rose you're up!" bellowed the pilot from her cockpit. The ships engines rotated allowing it to hover in place. Ruby turned to the group, "Well looks like I'm up." She spoke as she removed Crescent Rose from her back.

"You'll do great, I'll see you down there!" cheered Yang as she hugged her goodbye.

"Stay safe." Spoke Weiss as she in turn gave her a hug.

"See you soon." Blake too hugged her goodbye.

"Dear god, she's jumping into a forest not a volcano." The pilot sneered. They ignored her comment; Alex moved forward and merely tapped her on the shoulder, giving her a smile and a nod.

"Be careful, Red."

"Don't worry about me, Green." With the goodbyes said Ruby dashed forward out of the jet and plummeted down towards the earth below, her crimson cape billowing behind her as she vanished through the canopy. The jet rocketed off across miles of endless trees, eventually stopping minutes later. "Second drop, Weiss Schnee. And for the love of god make it quick." Weiss withdrew Myrtenaster and stepped to the edge of the opening; she spun and faced the group.

"I'll make my way to Ruby as soon as I hit the ground." She informed them.

"Try not to get eaten." Joked Yang, sticking her tongue out at her. Weiss gave her a sarcastic smile; Alex patted her on the shoulder, giving her a warm smile.

"Thank you for the jacket by the way." He added.

"Thank you for the advice." She returned. With that she quickly cast a glyph on her feet and launched herself clear of the jet. She leapt from glyph to glyph as she made her way down to the forest, they watched till she was beneath the treeline. Once again the ship accelerated, Alex figured there was a set amount of miles between each drop point. In a few minutes the Bulldog took up a hovering position.

"Third drop, Blake Belladonna." Came the pilot's voice. Blake withdrew Gambol Shroud, before giving Yang a hug.

"You'll come and find me right?" Blake asked as they released from their embrace, Yang gave her a wink.

"It'll be the first thing I do, promise." Assured Yang as Blake made her way to the edge.

"Thank you for all the help you gave us." She added to Alex as she stood on the edge. Yang noticed Alex's hand making small gestures, before he raised it and patted Blake on the back.

"Thank me when you come back alive and well." Blake nodded her agreement before steeping out and falling towards the ground, they both watched as the raven haired girl vanished from sight and the ship flew off once more.

"I know what you're doing." Admitted Yang as the last two hunters waited for the final drop.

"I don't know what you're talked about." He answered, feigning ignorance.

"You're placing glyphs on us, what does it do, is it a protection glyph, increased speed?" she pried, prodding Alex in the ribs desperate to hear the answer. The Bulldog began to hover.

"Fourth drop, Yang Xa…Xo…hmm, Yang you're up." Came the pilots call. Yang rolled her eyes.

"It's pronounced 'shou'" she yelled back.

"I don't care, get out of my plane!"

Yang walked to the edge of the ship, with a swift jolt of her arms, her dual ranged shot gauntlets opened up covering her forearms. She spun and faced Alex. "So, you gonna tell me what the glyph does?" this time Alex didn't try and hide his hand motions, he cast the glyph in front of her before placing his hand on her chest, with slight force he nudged her over the edge. Yang fell backwards from the jet, grinning all the way. "You're gonna have to show me what the glyph does one day!" Yang bellowed as she fell further and further away, she twisted her body in mid-air, firing Ember Celica to extend her flight, whooping and cheering as she did. Alex leaned out and watched her all the way.

"I pray I never have to." He quietly whispered to himself.

"Alright, so I was supposed to drop off four hunters, I wasn't told what to do with the extra baggage. What do you want to do?" the pilot called back to Alex.

"I'm just here for observation, I'm not part of this mission." He replied, his eyes still glued to the spot where Yang had vanished beneath the trees.

"That's cool, except I asked you what you _want _to do, not what _are _you doing." She ridiculed.

"What I'm doing is taking crap from a half arsed pilot." He shot back, turning to look at her.

"Ooh, I would be insulted if I cared what you think."

"Just treat me like a fifth member and act accordingly." He ordered in an agitated tone. The pilot whispered something but it was too quiet for Alex to make it out. The jet flew off once again to the final drop. Alex spent the few minutes staring out of the aircraft at the expansive forest below. A few memories tugged at his mind, time he spent there during his initiation. Times he fought, bled, cried, laughed, cheered, and cowered. Anyone would think that returning to such a place would make Alex's heart shiver with fear, instead his heart pumped faster and adrenaline surged through his veins. The wind roared past blowing the bottom of his jacket. He looked down at it, and fiddled with the clasp. He was told to merely observe but Alex desperately wanted to put his boots on the ground, for months he had been cooped up at Beacon, new faces and friends entertained him for a while but the thought of being able to cut loose, to forget everything he knew about a civilised world and lose himself to the chaos of survival, at any cost, was too much temptation to ignore.

"We're here." Called the pilot, as the jets engines rotated allowing the Bulldog to hover. Alex strode into the cockpit.

"You gonna stick around in case we need pulling out?" he asked out of concern, if one of the team members gets seriously injured a quick evac could mean the difference between life and death.

"Hell no, I'm going back to bed." She quipped. Alex glared at her; his patience for her jokes was starting to wane. "Chill, I'll be back in twenty-four hours, team RWBY has until then to complete all objectives." Alex smirked before walking to the open hatch; the pilot removed her helmet, placed the goggles on top of her head and leaned out to watch Alex.

"Hey." She called out; Alex turned and for a moment was thrown off by her features. The girl was youthful, not much older than himself. She had medium length red hair that was tied back into a pony tail, the googles sat at the top of her head with her fringe brushed to her left. Her eyes were a beautiful mix of violet and black, with dozens of silver dots around the pupil, they reminded Alex of miniature galaxies. Her ears were pierced as well as her lip and her features were soft and delicate and like almost every other girl in Beacon, incredibly beautiful. "You can always call me if you get too scared and need little old me to save your ass."

"You think you can throw me off by revealing how hot you are?" he added as he stood on the edge.

"You just said I was hot."

"No I didn't."

The pilot blushed slightly and tried to hide her smile "My name's Amelia by the way." Alex stared at the girl blankly. "This is the part where you tell me your name." Alex smirked at her, before raising his clenched fist and extending his middle finger. Amelia grinned and shook her head; Alex leaned back and fell from the ship towards the forest below. "God damn it, I think he's starting to grow on me." She whispered to herself, before setting off back to Beacon.

Alex plummeted head first towards the ground; the burning sun lit the horizon on fire as Alex passed through the clouds, with eyes closed he enjoyed the rush of wind passed his ears and the sound of his new jacket rippling in the wind.

"_We should do it."_

"We're not doing it."

"_We should do it."_

"We're not doing it!"

"_I'll do it."_

"You'll just waste your Aura."

"_But it'll look so cool."_

"Cool for whom?"

"_For us, and we are all that matter."_

Alex squinted his eyes open, the green foliage of the trees was approaching fast, and he had seconds to decide. He let out a sigh and in a moment Arras took control. Arras extended his body to catch as much wind as possible to slow his decent before pulling his knees up to his chest and extending his right hand to the fast approaching ground. He began to force his aura to his palm, his aura swelled up within him, flowing and ebbing through his veins towards a single point, the aura became so intense that it began to shimmer in the air, almost like a visible barrier beneath his feet. Arras slammed through the trees and branches as his aura absorbed the blows, and with a thundering crack, Arras himself slammed into the ground. His impact shattered the ground beneath him and the shockwave tore the ground and trees apart, blasting everything into shreds. Arras slowly got to his feet, his aura completely negating a 9,000 foot drop. Arras began to snigger at the destruction he caused.

"We're back bitches." He quipped as he stood amidst the carnage, and with that Alex took back the body.

"What you really meant to say was, I just wasted two thirds of my aura unnecessarily." He pointed out angrily, quickly checking his scrolls aura indicator before it changed to show his aura, rising back up into the green.

"_Worth it." _Alex began his journey through the overgrown forest. As he walked he admired his surroundings. The forest was full of life; birds chirped high above, streams of light broke through the mile high trees illuminating the area in a beautiful orange and green glow, the sound of running water could be heard nearby. Alex pushed through the thick brush. "_I can't believe we're really back here after all these years." _Added Arras as Alex swatted at a mosquito.

"I know what you mean. The amount of emotions I'm going through right now isn't even funny. It's like, I'm that scared little kid again, but then, I'm a pissed of warrior. I don't know, it's confusing." He withdrew a blade and cut through some overgrowth.

"_I say we go find some fun."_

"Remember why we're here, to observe the mission." Alex reminded his other half.

Arras sighed, "_Fine, Yang dropped the closest to us, let's see if we can't find her." _He suggested reluctantly, Alex grunted his agreement and broke into a jog, "_But please, try and find us some fun when you get there."_

* * *

Yang made her way cautiously through the forest. _This humidity is not good for my hair. _As soon as she landed she began to backtrack towards Blake's position. _Here's hoping she hasn't strayed too far. _As she pushed through a particularly thick overgrowth she heard something move behind some bushes to her left. Yang moved over and pulled the shrubbery apart, "Blake?" the creature behind it growled at Yang, "Wrong kitty!" she quipped as the creature lunged at her, Yang cartwheeled to the side and spun to face the creature that was now behind her. It was black and sleek, almost like a tiger yet it was the size of a car. It was all black except the bone like mask covering its eyes. It had a wide snout and long triangular ears. It bared its massive white fangs she also noticed its large white claws and it thudded its tail on the ground, which had a mass of muscle at the end like a wrecking ball. _Let's try and not get hit by that._

"You wouldn't have seen a tall, black haired, Faunus girl, about yay high with a pair of great legs?" the creature responded with a terrifying roar. "You could have just said no." Yang braced herself for another attack, except the creature just stood and waited, roaring and snarling at her. _What is it doing? Alright Yang focus, I've never seen any Grimm like this, and it definitely wasn't in that book Alex made us read, which could only mean that this is a new type of Grimm or it's not native to the rainforest. Alright, probe attacks first, let's see what this thing is capable of. _Yang rolled forward and launched three rounds from her gauntlets; the Grimm darted to the side dodging them, and then dashed forward for a counter attack. Yang braced for another charge, except the creature halted a meter from the huntress and spun its body, Yang rolled to the side at the last second as the massive tail crashed into the spot she was standing not a second ago. Yang dashed forwards and slammed a fist into the side of its head, the creature made a bite for her arm but she dropped the elbow of her other arm onto its head before upper-cutting the creature into the air. She launched herself up after it and smashed both fists over the creatures head, sending it crashing back to the ground. Yang landed perfectly and stared at the beaten Grimm, _Time to finish you off I think. _Just as the creature was getting back onto its feet, Yang fired her gauntlets backwards launching herself through the air, aiming straight for the monsters face. The Grimm saw the attack coming and crouched low causing Yang to sail overhead, as she did though hundreds of razor spines extended from the creatures back cutting into Yang's skin and tearing at her clothing. Yang lost her balance and skidded into the ground slamming into a tree.

The huntress got back to her feet and stared at her wounds, her aura was already at work healing the dozens of small cuts that littered her face and cleavage, her clothing actually held up pretty well, and only a few scraps were cut loose, nothing major. Yang made a mental note to thank Alex and Weiss when she got out of here. Yang glared at the creature from behind her blonde bangs and watched as it shot forward pressing its advantage. It made a bite for her head, its lethal fangs snapped at the air as she stepped back, it slashed at her midriff and she bent her body forward sucking her stomach in, a swipe for her arm and she twisted her body, it spun swinging its wrecking ball of a tail, Yang dropped low performing the splits as the tail sailed overhead. The creature made attempt after attempt to land a hit, Yang merely twisted her body and avoided each one, and every attack dodged only caused the creature to become more reckless and desperate to land a connecting blow. Until Yang saw her moment, she leapt up driving her fist into the creatures chin before spinning and driving another fist into the creature's ribs causing it to skid across the ground. The Grimm swung its tail out in a desperate attempt to put some distance between it and the ferocious huntress. Yang spun and caught the tail in her hands, digging her feet into the ground to brace her against the force. Her Semblance was beginning to peak as golden flames began to weave between her golden locks. Demonstrating her incredible strength she lifted the massive creature up over her head and smashed it into the ground, the monster was now on its back exposing its soft under belly. Now was her chance, Yang leapt high into the air and pulling back her fist, fired Ember Celica launching her towards the creature, the killing blow was all but assured. A massive force connected with Yang's side, she screamed in pain as she was blown into the trunk of a massive tree, smashing through it and crashing into the ground. She slowly picked herself up from the ground as the tree groaned and creaked as it began to timber, with a thundering crack it crashed to the ground. Yang, her eyes now turned bright crimson, glared at what knocked her off course. A second creature now stood between her and the injured one. Its body was much sleeker and slimmer than the other and had an almost distinctive female appearance.

"Trying to protect your boyfriend huh? Well I don't care if there are two of you, or two hundred. I'LL CRUSH YOU ALL!" she screamed as she slammed her fists together. Her hair billowed behind her as golden flames dance around her. With a single step the ground beneath her caved as she shot towards them at a blistering speed. The Grimm tensed and braced for the assault but was caught off guard as Yang stopped suddenly and slammed her fist into the ground. Her speed transferred into her punch and the ground shattered beneath the blow, a fissure cracked the ground apart straight towards the Grimm. The feminine monster lost its footing but before it had a chance to react Yang was on top of it. A blow to the side of its skull cracked the mask and sent the creature smashing through a dozen trees, each one came crashing down as earth and dust was flung into the air. She turned her attention to the other, wounded creature.

Her eyes widened to find it was gone she spun only to be blindsided by the surprise assault, its massive tail connected with her head, smashing her face into the ground, the sheer force of the blow was enough to crush anyone's skull into pulp, the fact that Yang was still conscious was a miracle. Though with what she saw next a quick death wouldn't have been so bad. The female Grimm that she blew away moments before was stood over her crumpled body, unscathed. Yang glared up at it through blurry eyes. "But I…" she spoke in dis-belief as the monster crushed Yang's left leg between its razor teeth. Her aura flashed to protect her but gave out from the sheer pressure. Yang howled in agony as the teeth sunk through the clothing and into her flesh, crimson blood soaked through her clothing as it stained the monsters mouth. It tore clothing and flesh apart as it violently shook its head. Yang's mind swam in pain as her conscious threatened to leave her. She pulled her right arm back but before she could strike the second creature sunk its teeth into her arm. Fresh pain flooded her systems as she screamed so loud her voice gave out. Both creature's pulled and tore at her flesh like some sick tug of war where Yang was the rope. Tears began to glaze her eyes as it was becoming too much to bear, she willed her other limbs to move but they dis-obeyed her, her entire body was becoming numb as blood flowed from both wounds. She watched as her leg was stripped bare, she could see the bones in her leg as the monsters ripped her body to shreds. Fear of death became all too real and adrenaline flooded her veins, her free leg twitched when she willed it to move. She couldn't feel it but she could see it move when she commanded it, raising her good leg she brought her boot down on the Grimm's face again and again, it refused to let go of her leg as Yang continued to batter its face with her boot. The cracked mask splintered even more and it released what was left of her limb, as it recoiled in pain. Her momentary hope that she could escape was snuffed out as the creature on here arm shook her like a rag doll and tossed her aside slamming her into a hillock of dirt, she slumped against it, unable to scream as her voice was gone, both the pain and adrenaline ebbed away as so did her life. She could hear her heartbeat begin to slow and she began to feel tired. Her eyelids began to feel like lead weights, but she refused to let them fall. Tears slipped from her eyes down her muddy cheeks as she began to sob. The two monsters watched patiently from afar as if savoring the moment before a kill. Yang stared down at her mangled limbs, flesh and muscle were ripped apart and the bone was visible in a dozen places. The tears began to flow heavier.

"I don't want to die, not here, not like this." She sobbed aloud. She wasn't afraid to die, the life of a huntress never usually ended happily ever after and she knew that. What she was afraid of was lost moments, things she'd never get to experience, and leaving everyone behind. Blake, her loyal partner and the very best friend she could ever ask for. Her baby sister, a team leader at fifteen, she was so proud of her. The thought of leaving her behind, like her mother and father before her, Ruby would be all alone now. Even Weiss, Yang would give anything to be scorned by that Ice queen. These thoughts only caused Yang to sob harder as fresh tears ran down her face. One of the creatures dragged its paw across the ground, Yang watched helplessly as it bounded towards her.

She squeezed her eyes closed, and prayed that her end would be quick and painless…

* * *

**A/N I always prefer stories where no-one is safe, that at any moment your favourite character could die. I guess that's why I'm drawn to stories like Attack on Titan or Game of Thrones.**

**Anyway N7Christopher and ManxMG will be uploading their stories about the other members of team AZRA soon, so be sure to keep an eye out for them. They. Are. Amazing.**

**Also be sure to let me know what you thought about the chapter, any feedback would be hugely appreciated, and I may just have something incredible to show you next chapter :)**


	11. The Eternity Forest: Part 2

**A/N Sorry for such a long wait, but I finally have part 2 here for you. :)**

* * *

**The Eternity Forest: Part 2**

Yang pressed the door open, careful to not let the hinges creak. The light from the hallway spilled into the darkened room as Yang peered in. Slowly illuminated was a figure asleep on a bed, Yang silently entered the room and moved to the side of the bed. Ruby was sound asleep, her chest slowly rising and falling as Yang watched over her, an affectionate smile on her face. She bent down and pulled the covers up over her little sister. _I know your first day at Signal was hard, but it will get better, I promise. _Yang knelt down and placed a soft kiss upon Ruby's forehead, the young girl slept soundly. A floor board creaked behind Yang and she turned to see their father stood in the hallway peering in, the same blank stare he had since Ruby's mother died. Without a noise he walked away, Yang sighed heavily and turned back to the sleeping girl.

"Don't worry Ruby; I'll always be there to take care of you." She whispered softly as she stroked the young girls head.

* * *

Yang squeezed her eyes shut as she braced for the inevitable, her heart would be thundering from fear if it could, instead it slowed as blood continued to flow from her wounds. It was too late to worry about any of that, the footfalls of the creature grew louder and louder until, silence. The world became muted, the wind in the trees, the animals chirping in the distance, the footfalls of the monstrous creature as it charged. Was she dead, had the creature sunk the killing blow and now she was in the afterlife? Her body was numb and she couldn't feel the pain anymore, the only way to know what happened would be to open her eyes. She refused though; fear that her final image would be the Grimm's jaws closing around her head.

However curiosity killed the cat and Yang slowly opened one eye, she squinted hard as golden light blinded her. She snapped her eyes open as she stared in dis-belief, a golden dome, the size of a small room, shielded her body, like a window tinted yellow. She gawped at all sides; it pulsed and vibrated as it sparkled a beautiful gold. Images flashed of creatures tearing at her body and her head snapped forward. The two monsters battered against the shield, now muted from the outside their movements seemed silly, almost comical in effect as they slammed and clawed at the golden window. _Where did this come from? I didn't do this, did I? _An image fluttered through her mind, Alex's hand on her chest as she fell backwards, a small smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. _Was this the glyph? Was it you who saved me? _The dome pulsed violently snapping Yang out of her train of thought. She stared up at the golden ceiling above her, almost like rain in slow motion; trickles of golden fire fell upon her. The small smile grew wider, her thoughts all but confirmed now. She held out her left hand catching one of dancing flames, it was warm to the touch and beautiful to behold. It danced around her hand, if this truly was Alex's glyph then this was a part of his Semblance, lowering her hand she slowly placed the flame onto the wounded leg. Almost sensing the damage the flame sunk deep into her skin, growing in size the fire all but consumed her leg, through small gaps she could see her leg being healed. More fire landed around her, two more went to work on her arm while others lingered over her body. The fire felt almost alive in its movements, gently moving around her body searching out wounds. She watched the other flames, the ones that missed her and fell silently to the ground. Whatever they touched grew and bloomed, grass grew taller and stronger, flowers bloomed in a beautiful rainbow of colours, white, gold, lilac, and red, the flowers blossoming under the flames touch. Yang lay amongst a bed of flowers, the entire trauma before now gone from her mind as she stared at the beauty around her. _Looks like your semblance does a lot more than heal wounds. _Distracted by her surroundings she forgot that feeling had now returned to her damaged limbs. The flames had dissipated and her wounds healed. Her clothing was still torn or gone in certain places, the only proof of what had happened. She flexed her arm and bent her leg, satisfied that everything worked properly she gingerly got back to her feet dusting herself off. The two creatures had given up their assault and now paced patiently on the other side.

"What's up? Pissed you didn't get your meal?" she bellowed, taunting the creatures. "I promise you that before this fight is over I'll get to watch the light die from your eyes." she whispered through gritted teeth, even though the threat was meant for both creatures, Yang kept her eyes locked with the female Grimm, it's mask still visibly splintered from her boot and its teeth stained with her blood. The dome once again pulsed violently, this time it was different, the bright shine of the golden illumination began to dim. It was clear; the shield was beginning to fail. The Grimm sensed it too, their pacing now stopped, and they crouched low like a coiled spring, waiting for that moment. Fear clutched Yang's heart again, whilst her wounds were all but a thing of the past, her aura was still extremely diminished. She remembered what Alex had told her, his Semblance healed physical trauma but did nothing to replenish lost aura. So now Yang was back to square one, the creatures still uninjured yet this time she was too weak, if she couldn't best them at her peak what chance did she have now. Shaking her head as if to shake loose those morbid thoughts, she placed one foot forward, crouched slightly and raised both fists in front of her, Ember Celica's golden cast shimmered in the light. _I won't run. I was given a second chance, I won't waste this. _Like a bubble bursting in slow motion the dome vanished, like the crack of lightning the creatures bolted forward, and Yang braced, the distance closing fast she readied for her assault. A high pitched whistle pierced the air followed by an arrow striking the ground between Yang and the monsters, with a roaring clap the arrow exploded, sheer force blasted Yang back slamming her into the hillock she was against not moments ago. Her ears screamed and her vision blurred, her head felt like a tractor had ran it over and she held her head in the palm of her hand. Earth and dust was thrown into the air from the explosion. Through squinted eyes she could make out the Grimm, they too were cast backwards from the explosion; they had a hard time coming to their senses, rolling on the ground in agony, though even from this distance Yang could see they showed no wounds.

A shadow flitted across her face drawing her attention to her side. She watched as the hunter responsible strolled passed her towards the creatures. His dark green jacket flowing gently in the breeze, his twin curved, almost transparent, blades held in each hand. His shoulders rose and fell rapidly; he was exhausted panting from serious exertion. Her heart began to beat rapidly in her chest for the first time in a while, she had never been so glad to see Alex in her life. He craned his head to face her; his silver eyes pierced her very being, visible drops of sweat ran down his face, he looked haggard. "Stay put, I'll handle this." Without another word he advanced towards the waiting creatures.

* * *

Alex clenched his fists around his blades as he strode through the setting dust towards the creatures. Both glared at the hunter but neither of them made a move, "_Something's wrong here, any other Grimm would have attacked us by now." _Arras's remark was only met by silence from Alex. "_Look I know I shouldn't have used up my aura trying to show off back there, but I had no way of knowing this would happen, and so soon. Not to mention we're not supposed to interfere with this mission, once Ozpin finds out what you've done, you can say goodbye to these chicks for good." _Alex eyed both creatures equally, a heavy silence hung in the air as the opposing forces watched and waited for the other to make a move, it was as if the entire forest held its breath in anticipation.

"These creatures aren't natural." Alex muttered aloud, Arras sighed heavily, realising that his partner had no desire to talk about his blunder.

"_You're right, I'm not even getting the same feeling I get from other Grimm, and their hesitation to attack shows intelligence. Be careful, who knows what other nasty tricks they have up their sleeve." _No warning in motion, no change in facial expression, Alex struck, he darted for the left creature but it was a feint, at the last moment he struck for the right female creature, caught off guard the monster recoiled from a blade across its face. The hunter leapt backwards from the males counter attack, its heavy tail smashing the ground where the hunter stood moments ago. Connecting both blades as he spun through the air, he launched an ice dust arrow; it struck the tale, a small glacier appearing out of thin air, freezing the tail to the ground. The monster struggled but it was futile, detaching his blades he rushed forward, "Can you manage a small burst?" he asked his partner.

"_A small burst, sure." _With an image of his attack sent to Arras, Alex leapt through the air as if diving head first at the creature, with both blades outstretched he spun his body in mid-air, a quick switch to Arras and he surged his Semblance, turning his body into a human drill Arras burst through the creatures sides, tearing a clean hole through the monsters rib cage and landing on the other side. With Alex back in control, he turned to view the damage, the creature howled and roared in agony. The young hunter was surprised the monster was even still alive, a gaping hole though its body, the disgusting stench of putrid blood hung in the air. Alex was unfortunately covered in the stuff, his dark green jacket now streaked with oil black blood. _That takes care of that creature. _The female Grimm charged him from behind, hearing its footfalls, he leapt into the air back flipping as the monster charged beneath him, missing its target, as he landed in a crouched position. The female creature stood between him and the dying male. Alex's eyes widened in horror, beyond the female Grimm, its partners wounds were rapidly healing; the gaping hole in its torso was sewing itself shut. In a disgusting fashion the awed hunter watched as the ribs grew back, organs and tissue regenerated and the skin grew over it all completing the healing. _"They can regenerate?!" _The monster turned around and sunk its teeth into its own frozen tail, severing the appendage. Just like the previous wound a new tail was already beginning to grow back. _"When you do it, it's cool and beautiful, when they do it I wanna hurl." _Now freed from the frozen trap the male stood next to its female companion.

The two Grimm looked at one another; the male gave a few low grunts before the female turned in the opposite direction and bolted into the forest leaving only Alex and the male. "_That was genuine communication there; I've never seen Grimm do that!" _General communication between Grimm was a given, attack or retreat, but what they had just witnessed seemed like a much higher level of communication. _"This is all wrong Lexi, they don't give off the same presence as Grimm, they regenerate far too fast for it to be natural, they can communicate and show far higher intelligence, They don't even appear like a Grimm creature, they seem…too perfect, if that makes any sense." _Alex forgot all about his anger at Arras, his partners words rang true, there were too many questions but he couldn't worry about that now. Whatever the female Grimm was up to wasn't good for him, he needed to remove the male Grimm as quickly as possible. But how do you kill something that can regenerate its wounds unnaturally fast? Beheading came to the hunters mind, as well as fire, both seemed like good options. Before he had time to form a plan the lone Grimm struck, it bolted forward recklessly, Alex darted left and right, ducking and dodging the deadly attacks, he raised his blades to block a ferocious bite and even though his blades cut through the creature it still persisted, obviously sure of its healing ability. The monster made a spear tackle for Alex' ribs, he contorted his body to the side and the Grimm slammed into the trunk of a large tree behind the hunter, attaching both blades Alex made a powerful stride forward thrusting his spear forward impaling the creature against the tree, with one blade almost completely inside the creature, the blood stained hunter quickly detached the other blade and got to work on the creatures neck. With violent powerful swings he began to hack and slash at the creature's neck, Black blood sprayed over him every time he whipped the blade back. The monsters howls were deafening but slowly the neck began to sever. Alex's rage began to boil over in hot waves; the sight of Yang's blood staining the creatures jaw fuelled his fire as he hacked away.

"AAAAAAARRRRRRGH!" his bellow pierced the air as his final swing severed the creatures head. For a few moments Alex stared at the severed head. The creature's body had gone limp and its eyes dimmed as life faded away. "ARGH!" with a roar of anger he kicked the head away, its flesh already disintegrating as was the nature of Grimm corpses. He stumbled back a few steps, the female Grimm was still lurking somewhere and he couldn't let his guard down. Pivoting on the spot Alex scanned his surroundings; it could strike from any direction at any moment. A noise from behind him and he spun in a defensive posture, his body low to the ground with his lone blade held in both hands in front of him, his eyes widened in shock. The noise came from the dead creature, its body twitching and convulsing as, disgustingly and terrifyingly slowly, a new head began to grow. A small shrunken head was slowly 'birthed' from the gaping neck wound. The head began to grow in a disgusting fashion of breaking the small skull, expanding, regrown and repeating the process.

"_No fucking way…" _Arras muttered in disbelief. With its new head now fully formed, complete with skin and a new set of ember eyes, it turned its gaze to the shaken hunter. A ferocious howl left its lungs, Alex's eyes darted upwards but it was too late, the female Grimm leapt from the treetops crushing him beneath its weight. The wind was knocked from his lungs as the weight of what felt like a car crushed his ribs, his sole blade also vanished from his hand, skidding away across the forest floor. With a lunge of its head the creature sank its teeth into his right shoulder; momentarily disorientated, Alex hadn't even had time to shield himself with his Aura. The teeth sank almost gracefully into the man's flesh, his howl and agony rang out through the forest. Like an over excited pet with a chew toy the monster shook its head violently tearing into his flesh and shattering his collarbone. Dark crimson blood sprayed from his shoulder. Alex could do nothing, blinding white pain burned away his senses, with no weapon and his arms pinned at his sides he stood no hope, if the creature moved for his head it was all over. In this moment Alex realised something horrifying. The creature could have killed him easily but instead struck to immobilise him. When he arrived to save Yang her clothing was torn at her leg and arm suggesting they were trying to do the same thing to her. The creatures were trying to keep them alive, but for what purpose? "_How about you focus on not dying you idiot! Use an arrow!" _the realisation hit him like a train, with his left hand down at his side he could reach his arrows, he didn't want to think what would have happened if he didn't switch their position from his back to his side. Fumbling for a few moment Alex grabbed the arrow he needed, with all the force he could muster he jammed the tip into the creatures exposed underbelly. With a howl of pain the creature stumbled off him, a small buzzing noise could be heard from the arrow. Now free Alex rolled backwards and onto his feet, the pain subsiding he focused his Semblance on his wound, time was essential, healing damage and minimising pain took longer than just focusing on healing, doing so he screamed in agony as tissue regrew and bones popped back into place, but in moments the damage was gone. The monster howled and writhed on the floor, the arrow the hunter had jammed in was a drill arrow, used for armoured targets, the arrow was now burrowing painstakingly slow through the creatures body. The male Grimm dashed forwards, its ferocious bite aimed at his head, clearly the creature had given up on taking him alive. _"Aww did we make you mad?" _Rolling backwards Alex grabbed his blade as he did so, he quickly dashed to the side, retrieving his second blade from the tree, and it was slick with black blood. Alex gagged as the slimy substance touched his hand. "_Get over it!" _Now armed, he faced the two creatures once again; the arrow had made its way through the monster and now lay useless on the floor. Back to square one.

"Can you help me out?"

"_Not too well, but another small burst is all I got." _Alex clicked his tongue at the response, the key would be to separate one and focus on the other, though every attempt has led to failure. Beheading doesn't work so fire was the other option. Both creatures stood rather far apart, too far to make use of Arras's ability. Focusing on the male Alex broke off at a sprint straight for it, Arras took over moments before impact and shot forward passed the creature. The monster howled and slumped to the floor, its legs no longer able to hold it up. Arras had severed the tendons on all four legs. The female burst for an attack and Alex turned and ran through the trees. The creatures footfalls were not far behind, "_That's right you stupid mutt!" _Alex darted between trees, leaping over small hillocks and fallen trees. Breaking into a small clearing he dropped to his knees and spun as he slid, launching an arrow at the Grimm, the arrow split in two with a cable between the shafts, the bola arrow wrapped around the monsters front legs causing it to slam into the ground, he rolled out of its path as the monster connected with a tree trunk.

"Burn you son of a…" releasing the nocked red dust arrow the monster erupted in an inferno of orange flames. The fire devoured the creature's body, it thrashed and howled. Alex slowly stood as his eyes mirrored the image of the burning Grimm. The sound of heavy footfalls drew closer, Alex faced the noise, his body lowered like a coiled spring. In an instant the male Grimm erupted from the bushes. Alex leapt away avoiding the charge, the creature halted instantly, turned its body and charged at the hunter before he had even touched the ground. Quickly attaching the blades he released an arrow, a deadly accurate bolt that pierced the creatures eye, it continued its charge as if being bothered by a fly. Alex gritted his teeth and detached the blades. The sound of blades cutting air, claws and teeth against steel, echoed throughout the forest. The Grimm was driven mad by bloodlust, its attacks were reckless, caring little about wounds or limbs and it pressed its attack against the hunter. In normal circumstances the creature would have died after the first exchange of blows. Alex blocked and countered expertly, but against a foe that could regenerate so quickly his tactics were nothing but a stall, a stall for the inevitable. He would grow tired and make a mistake and once that happened, only death would await him. As he fought with every fibre of his being to keep the creature at bay his mind ran awry with panic.

The burning creature was still howling and the fire was dying away, not even fire was enough to kill them. With all options exhausted what hope did he have, an invincible foe against a mortal hunter, there was only going to be one outcome from the very moment he engaged them in combat. The dark realisation momentarily shook him, before his anger surfaced again. Death was a way of life for a hunter, there was no happy ending for someone like him. His mind became sharp like the blades he wielded, giving up wasn't in Alex's book. He didn't give up after his parents died, he didn't give up after his team-mates died, he didn't give up all those countless times Geralt hunted him, and he was not going to give up now. He was never afraid of death itself, but more of missed opportunities, if he was told that every pain he went through, every agonising moment would allow him to continue, then he'd bear it all without complaint. Overflowing with equal amounts of anger and determination he fought on. With his staff held in front of him he jammed the handle into the creature's mouth to prevent it from biting his head clean off. The creature raised itself onto his hind legs and pushed its weight down upon him, Alex's strength buckled and he collapsed onto one knee. He twisted his staff which was lodged in the creature's mouth, its head twisted with it and an audible snap could be heard. A broken neck meant nothing to the monster, however it gave him some leeway and he pushed back the creature. Pulling his weapon from its mouth he backfipped, driving his foot into the creatures chin. However it was Arras that performed this maneuver, with his speed Semblance a simple back kick turned into a supersonic attack. The blow sounded like a gunshot which shook the ground. The monster was sent flying, its lower jaw crushed from the blow. With Alex back he launched three arrows in rapid succession. Each one tore through the creature's body as it sailed through the air. With a thud the creature impacted the ground.

Alex rose to his feet and was about to rush forward when his senses burned with an overbearing threat. In slow motion Alex turned his head, less than a meter away a massive set of jaws was about to close around his head. There was no time to react, he couldn't dodge nor raise his weapon in time. The Grimm on fire had recovered and flanked him while he was distracted, and now its planning had paid off as it was less than a second from devouring his flesh. His mind went blank he couldn't even yell in terror, and the jaws blocked his vision. It was over.

Golden light blinded him, a flash like lightening connected with the monsters skull, smashing it away and skidding across the forest floor. Alex just stared bewildered, his mind and body which had accepted death had no idea how to react now that he was saved. In front of him stood that girl, her long golden hair blowing gently in the breeze, her red eyes burned with hatred as she stood with a fist outstretched. Like a hammer coming crashing down his mind snapped back into gear.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!" he snapped, uncharacteristically. Yang stared back bewildered. In a blink her lilac eyes had returned.

"What do you mean, I'm saving you!" She snapped back, turning to face him.

"I thought I told you I'd handle this, besides you're in no condition to fight!"

"So I was to what, sit and watch you die, this is no different than you saving me before." She countered; Alex opened his mouth for a rebuke but the realisation of where they were struck him. Arguing in the middle of battle was a foolish blunder; however luck was on their side as the two creatures had yet to recover. The two hunters faced the monsters as they rose to their feet. Now faced with both hunters the creatures once again showed hesitation. Showing intelligence like this was really starting to unnerve the young hunter, both creatures advanced either side of them, boxing them in. Alex and Yang now stood back to back.

"Well looks like we get to die together." Alex morbidly joked.

"What, you didn't save me just to watch me die now did you?" Yang spoke in a disturbingly cheery tone for someone who almost perished.

"I guess I could say the same to you." Alex eyed the male Grimm in front of him, its ember eyes burning back at him. "Well it looks like we get one each; I'll take the boyfriend here."

"Good, I wanted the chick anyway." Yang responded, her tone now filled with determination.

"You know, I don't think we can kill them." Alex pointed out, his voice softening. Yang knew exactly what he meant, with no shot at victory it was likely they'd both die. Still…

"I don't care; I'll beat them till they wish they could die." Yang added coldly, clearly her near death experience had pissed her off as much as when he took a strand of her hair. With their eyes fixated on their targets both hunters crouched low. Alex raised his right foot as Yang raised her left, placing the soles of their boots against each other.

"I'll see you on the other side." Yang added calmly. Alex desperately wanted to turn and look at her, to see her face one last time. A wave of emotion overwhelmed him, his steel resolve holding him in check; he didn't dare take his eyes off his target.

"I'll see you soon." Alex mentally kicked himself, his potential last words and that was the best he could do.

"_You're so fucking smooth."_ Arras added sarcastically.

The hunters pushed off from one another charging their targets. Alex side stepped the creatures attack, dropping to his knees as he slashed at the creature's abdomen. Pushing himself back onto his feet he bolted from the area, in an attempt to draw the fight as far from Yang as possible. He could hear the sound of her gauntlets letting loose their shotgun rounds; this fight was going to be impossible enough without having to watch Yang fight as well.

He dashed through the trees, low branches and twigs slashed at him. The creatures charge was right behind him.

"Just….a little….farth-ARGH!" The Grimm head-butted Alex's side sending him flying into a tree. The hunter twisted his body in the air landing with his feet against the trunk, pushing off he launched himself back towards the monster. Making a wild slash at the creature to put it on the defensive he began to slash with precision against the creature. Alex targeted limbs as well as the eyes. Ducking the creatures swing from its front paw he severed the other limb holding it up. With no front limbs on the ground the Grimm slammed head first into the ground. The green hunter drove a blade into the side of its neck before leaping over head, dragging the blade as he did, severing the neck half way. He quickly slashed the creature's stomach, guts and blood spilled out giving off a horrendous stench that almost caused his stomach to heave. Back flipping through the air he severed the tail as he did, he quickly moved for the hind legs slashing one and removing the other with a scissor attack from his twin blades. Black blood stained the green forest. The neck wound and the front limb had already healed; the stomach wound was well on its way. The monster made a ferocious bite for the hunters arm only for him to pull it away and slash its eyes with his other blade, destroying the ember orbs as well as shattering the white bone-like mask.

The fight continued like this for what felt like an eternity. Alex had lost count of how many limbs he had severed again and again. Thirty? Forty? He had lost count long ago. So much black blood stained the area, almost like a scene from a hellish nightmare. No colour existed, just the inky black and a stench that could kill someone on its own. The hunter was exhausted, his body desperately wanted air but the foul stench caused him to gag with every breath. His attacks were slowing down and slowly but surely the tide was turning. He leapt back putting quite a bit of distance between them. In that time every injury he had inflicted had healed. The dark creature almost camouflaged amongst its black stained surroundings.

"It's…*gasp*...useless…" he panted, his body was stained with the foul blood as well, no matter how far he went the stench never left him, always burning at his nostrils with every breath. The creature lashed forward, Alex raised his blades in defence absorbing the head on charge. It sent him flying but he still landed on his feet, skidding backwards as he did. Before he had a chance to recover the creature was on top of him. It was almost like it knew its prey was weak, now taking the opportunity to finish him off. He was still able to dodge its attack, but his movements were slow and sluggish, almost as if the black blood was draining him off his stamina.

The monster cracked Alex in the chest with its head, the sound of cracking ribs could be heard, blood was thrown from his mouth as he staggered back, his blades slipping from his hands. Barely on his feet had the monster spun with deceptive speed, its massive wrecking ball of a tail striking the hunter away like a batsman at a baseball game. His body was sent smashing through the ground, dirt and earth kicked up from the sheer force at which he was thrown.

His whole body screamed in agony, the blinding white pain burned his senses like a soldering iron pressed against his brain. Blood dripped from his mouth, his breaths were sharp and ragged, each one causing him more than enough pain on its own.

"_Alex you need to focus, the body is a mess." _Arras yelled from the back of his mind. Being Aura sensitive Arras was able to tell what the exact damage was by how desperately his Aura was trying to heal him. Given the tense strain in his voice the outlook was bleak at best.

"Da…ha…ha…mage…" Alex spluttered, blood spraying from his mouth. His mind wiped clean from the pain, force of habits and sheer force of will was keeping him coherent. Arras swore, not really wanting to tell the dying hunter of his injuries but perhaps knowing how close he was to death might get him to focus enough to use his Semblance, which, right now was the only thing that could save him.

"_Multiple rib fractures, internal bleeding, collapsed lung, you've got flail chest from multiple shattered ribs. The reason you can't move your legs is from the shattered spinal cord. Alex, we are going to die in the next thirty seconds if you don't focus. Alex! Are you listening to me! You are going to die!"_

Alex could hear a voice yelling at him in the distance, he couldn't tell who it was through, they sounded so far away. His breathing became slower and his eye lids grew heavy. The pain was too unbearable, he wanted it to stop, begged it to end. Perhaps, going to sleep would get rid of it.

…

"_Listen to me you little punk, if you close your eyes I will tear out your tongue and stab the crap out of it with a rusty screwdriver!" _Arras was screaming like a mad man, not caring about the implications of threatening bodily harm to a body he shared. _"What about Yang huh!? Who's gonna save her, just imagine what that other Grimm is doing to her right now! Tearing at her body, devouring her flesh as she screams for it to stop! Not a soul in sight to help her and here you are dying like a coward!"_

"Ya…ng?"

"_Is that what you're gonna do!? Just give up and die like a piece of trash!? I thought you were going to protect everyone! Isn't that what you promised me when Blackwall and Krippler died!? That you weren't going to let anyone you care about perish as long as you drew breath!"_

"Yang…"

"_Well guess what Alex! You are about to break that promise!" _Arras screamed as loud as he could imagine. Alex eyes shot open, the pain momentarily subsiding as rage burned within the broken man.

"Yang!" Green fire erupted from his body, an emerald firestorm swirling around consuming everything it touched. His injuries healed at a speed which could be considered a miracle. Alex rose to his feet, the fire consuming his body relentlessly. Back on his feet he glared at the monster in front of him, its burning ember eyes reflecting the flaming hunter. "I won't die! Not when she needs me. I…have to save everyone, and no-one will stand in my way!" he roared as he took a step forward. The monster, for whatever reason, took a step back. Alex, still consumed in the green flames, staggered towards the Grimm. With every step he took the Grimm took another one in the opposite direction.

Several metres had been covered and Alex still made his slow staggered advance. The monster continued to retreat, backing itself against a tree. "_Why won't it attack? You're unarmed and everything, it should be going all out like it was before." _Arras's suspicion piqued his partner's interest, in his moment of confusion his flames died away. The determination the creature lacked returned in a flash. With a heavy paw dragging across the ground the creature dashed forward. The hunter's widened in realisation.

"I…get it now…"

"_Huh?" _Responded his counter at his vague comment. With a devilish grin Alex raised his right hand, green fire consumed his arm. Almost as fast as its confidence returned it vanished in a second, the creature skidding to a halt.

"It seems your intelligence betrays you Grimm." The young man mocked as he made a slow advance against the retreating creature. "You see normal Grimm lack heightened intelligence, well the young ones do at least, but even the older Grimm or Prime class Grimm never retreat once they hunt a target. Except we both know you're not a real Grimm are you, and you most definitely have intelligence, you made that abundantly apparent. Do you know the thing about intelligent creatures?" he asked rhetorically, the monster was now backed against the tree once again. Emotions were hard to read on a Grimm, but its body shrunk low and its ember eyes stayed glued to the emerald flames on the hunters arm. "Intelligent creatures fear death, they always strive for survival. An immortal creature like you shouldn't be afraid of anything, unless, you see something that can kill you?" he eyed his burning arm. "Let's put my theory to the test. Now Arras!"

Taking control for a mere second Arras blitzed the last few meters, the sheer force of his speed blew apart the ground he was stood on, before the creature even had a chance to blink. Time seemed to slow down as Arras slid to the right of the monster, surrendering to Alex; he ignited his arm once again and thrust it at the creatures head. Slivers of fire arced for the Grimm piercing its skin and burrowing through its eyes. The sound of sizzling skin reached the hunters ears as well as the smell of burning flesh. The monster howled in excruciating pain, for the first time Alex watched as the burn marks failed to heal. With a wicked smile he kicked up his Semblance a notch, his palm turning into a makeshift flamethrower.

The ferocious green flames consumed the creature in a fireball, smashing and flailing, the monster threw its body savagely. The hunter took a step back, momentarily put off by the scene in front of him. Fire burns because that's what it does, it doesn't discriminate, no matter what you are, or what object it touches it burns everything equally. Yet the sight of his own flames was something different, the fire attacked the Grimm as savagely as it healed wounds. No matter how furiously the Grimm flailed the fire always circled back for more, consuming it in waves of fire, again and again. As quickly as the monster was consumed they died away. A smoking carcass was all that was left behind. Heavy smoke rising from the remains, Alex instinctively raised his arm to his nose in an attempt to block the nauseating smell. He gingerly approached the deceased creature. He gently kicked the body with the tip of his boot. No response, just a charred black mess. Retreating a few steps he collapsed to his knees, releasing the breath he didn't realise he was holding.

"Ha…ha…we did it…" he spluttered between nervous breaths, a silly grin on his face.

"_Are you a moron? Yang!" _Eyes snapping open, a wave of adrenaline assaulted his heart. On his feet and weapons in hand in a blink of an eye, Alex ran as fast as his exhausted body could manage. His muscles screamed for a rest but he ignored their pleas pushing them to the back of his mind.

_If something like my injuries happened to her, without a Semblance like mine then she'd be_…

Alex shook his head, trying to shake loose his morbid thoughts. He had to believe that she was still alive; the thought of losing her now, after everything was too much. His stomach tightened at the mere thought of such a scene. _Please be alive. You have to be, you have to be, you have to be._

"_Will you shut up and focus on where you're stepping!" _his other half cut off his wild thoughts, taking his advice the green clad hunter focused more on his surroundings than anything else. His legs were burning, the muscles reaching their limit. He stumbled more than a few times over loose branches and uneven ground. Thoughts of stopping for a moment against a tree to catch a breath occasionally popped into mind, but he refused. If he stopped he wasn't sure he could get going again. His body was running on mere willpower by now. He didn't know if he was running in the right direction, he just had to believe he would find her.

So focused on keeping one foot in front of the other he didn't realise the scene in front of him. _Crash._ The sound of a tree shattering snapped his eyes forward, his feet skidding to a halt. Completely forgetting all the exhaustion and pain from his body he stared, mouth hanging open, at the spectacle before him. He couldn't truly believe it, his worse fear, the sight of Yang dying in the jaws of the creature just as he arrived, too late to save her, was, completely unjustified.

Yang had the creature by its tail and was swinging it about like a maniac, smashing its body against any surface within reach. Trees, boulder, the ground, its bloody and broken body constantly taking and healing damage. Yang herself was a mess. Her golden locks were coated with sweat and matted to her head, sweat pouring profusely down her face. Her burning red eyes glaring as she repeatedly smashed the monster against a particularly stubborn tree trunk that wouldn't give way.

"You might not be able to die, but I'm gonna make you wish you could!" the furious huntress bellowed.

This was fear, pure and unadulterated. Not fear at the creature, but at Yang. Waving a monster of unbelievable strength like it was a mere flag was just too much to take in. "Yang!" the traumatised hunter yelled before he had a chance to think too much. Smashing the monsters body one final time the tree gave way, with a loud drawn out groan of snapping bark, the century old tree fell to the ground. With the creature still gripped in her hands she glared at the young man. Alex licked his dry lips as his mind was drawing a blank, still trying to process the scene.

"Use _your Semblance, kill it before it regenerates!" _Acting on his partner's words he sprinted forward.

"Restrain it!" he ordered as he rushed over. Not needing telling twice Yang moved to its head, pinning its throat beneath her powerful leg to the ground, she gripped its mouth pulling its mouth open. Row after row of jagged teeth were visible, as well as a black slimy appendage that was the tongue. Its teeth stained a crimson red from Yang's blood. Reaching her, he set his arm alight with green fire. "You want something to eat? Eat this!" the hunter thrust his arm into the monsters jaws. The Grimm began to buck and thrash wildly but the woman restraining it didn't budge an inch as she exerted more pressure on its neck. The emerald fire poured through the creatures insides, roasting it from the inside out. The fire began to burn through its skin. As the brilliant green flames touched the ground, flowers began to bloom, a beautiful rainbow of colours were a stark contrast against the burning black monster. Fire made its way over Yang, small cuts and bruises from her fight were erased. The scene was captivating as two hunters dispatched a Grimm amongst a bed of flowers and emerald flames. As Alex looked to Yang he saw her eyes fixed on that of the Grimm's, her glare maintained until the light flickered from its eyes, and the fire consumed them.

The thrashing long since stopped, Alex removed his hand as Yang released the dead monster; stepping away she began to show the true extent of her exhaustion. She collapsed to her knees; a small almost silent laugh began to echo from her lips. The small chuckle became a roaring laughter. Startled, Alex could merely stare bewildered at her reaction. The laughing faded into sobs as she raised her head to the sky, tears rolling down her face, washing a clear line through the blood and the dirt. Alex moved behind the crying huntress and fell onto his rear, panting hard, his muscles finally getting that well-earned rest they screamed so much for. The hunters sat back to back, using each other for support.

* * *

For fifteen minutes the pair sat there, pulling long breaths into their exhausted bodies. The carcass of the monster had long since disintegrated. The flame touched flowers left blooming in an array of colours, sunbeams stretched from the tree tops staining the forest floor in a golden haze. It was a picturesque scene of tranquility devoid of any evidence that two hunters almost lost their lives there.

"So, any other secrets you hiding from me?" asked the huntress now that her breathing had become more stable.

"Huh?" Alex gave a look of confusion before looking over his shoulder at her.

"Your Semblance, I didn't know it could kill Grimm, how long were you gonna hide that from us?" she asked accusingly. Alex stared down at his hands.

"To be honest, I only just figured it out a few moments ago against the other Grimm." He answered, his voice having a hint of melancholy to it.

"You're kidding me, right?"

Alex shook his head in response; clenching his fists he slammed one against his forehead. "I can't believe I didn't figure this out sooner, do you have any idea how many times this would have come in handy, the amount of fights I could have ended in seconds if I had just known!" he yelled in frustration. Yang let out a small chuckle at his misfortune.

"Well now you know, nothing you can do about it now. We should probably search for the others, we don't know if they ran into the same trouble as us." Suggested Yang as she leaned her head back, resting it on the young man's shoulder. Alex felt heat rise into his cheeks, even with the exertion and the sweat her hair still smelt faintly of strawberries and the locks of hair that brushed his cheek were silky smooth.

"Urgh….yeah, I was thinking the same thing." The hunter stared into the cerulean blue sky, dark green foliage blocked out most of the afternoons light. "If we're gonna find them, our best bet would be to continue the mission, most likely they're doing the same." Yang lifted her head and removed her scroll from her pouch.

"Well we have two objectives. Search for a relic hidden somewhere in the forest and destroy a Grimm nest." She informed the hunter. Alex paused for a moment in thought. While he was allowed to aid the team and accompany them to observe, something he had utterly ignored, he was not allowed to help them complete the mission, based on that he was given no clue as to what their actual mission was.

"I take it, it doesn't matter which Grimm nest?" he asked.

"Nope, as long as it's Grimm and it's a lair it doesn't matter." She answered, groaning as she stretched her tired leg muscles.

"That makes things a little harder, no clues on where to go from that. What about this relic, I highly doubt they told you search the Eternity Forest without some clues." Yang went back to her scroll.

"They only hint we got was a body of water."

Alex smiled knowingly. "It seems our luck is starting to turn around." Yang craned her neck to stare at the hunter. He turned to face her; their proximity meant their noses were grazing against each other. The heat in his face grew hotter as his chest suddenly became tight; controlling his breathing became a conscious effort. "Erm…" he quickly looked away, "Err, what that means is Blue diamond, it's a lake located within the forest."

Yang smiled, seeing the young man fluster, it was almost too cute to her. "Any idea where this lake is?" she asked, whispering the question into his ear, her voice dripping with honey.

"Well, I…Urgh…spotted it from the ship; I was dropped off not far from it. Unfortunately…." Alex opened the scroll attached to his arm. "I've changed direction too many times; I don't know where that was." Despite the bad news his voice sounded hopeful.

"It seems like you might have an idea though." She pointed out. Ceasing her playful attitude to let him focus on a plan.

Alex gave a smirk, "When we left they disabled our scrolls map to add a challenge, but, our scroll has a GPS, so we can still track our previous positions using that. So, if we set off at midday, took roughly thirty minutes to get here, give or take fifteen minutes then…" scrolling through his previous co-ordinates he found what he was looking for, "Here, at 12:41, my altitude went from roughly nine thousand to zero, this was my drop point." He pointed out holding his arm out for Yang to see.

"Hmm, it's not terribly far from here, well what are we waiting for?" She let out a groan as she pushed her muscles getting back on her feet.

Alex pushed himself onto his feet, "I'll lead the way, in our condition we shouldn't push ourselves, who knows what trouble we could run into, best to reserve our energy." The golden haired huntress frowned at his advice.

"What if the others are in trouble, we should hurry to help them." Her tone grew slightly agitated, but the exhaustion in her voice betrayed her.

"We don't even know if they are in trouble, those might have been the only two of those monsters. Not to mention how exhausted we are, rushing to their aide will only get us killed, we'd be in no condition to stand, let alone fight." The huntress lost enthusiasm, her shoulders hung heavily. "Right now we need to look after ourselves, we'll head to the river and track it to Blue Diamond, if we're lucky we'll find them." He placed his hands on her shoulders and gave her a reassuring smile.

"See, this is why you're a team leader." She returned his smile.

"Well if the others are half as badass as you, then they're fine." He added, turning to make his way to their destination.

* * *

They had been walking for quite some time; Yang took this time to admire the rainforest. The forest was alive with nature, bird songs could be heard in the distance, as well as countless other wildlife. Yet despite this she couldn't spy a single creature, obviously well masked and hidden into their natural environment. The trees and leaves obscured her vision in all directions. This was a true jungle; the heavy moisture clung to her, wrapping her body. The sounds of dozens of strange creatures calling out made the jungle feel alive, like it had its very own pulse, it may look the same in all directions but it was amazing. What she found even more amazing was Alex, who was cutting a clear path with his blade without any hesitation.

"Can I ask you a question?" she asked, breaking the silence between the two.

"Shoot."

"When you first arrived to save me, you looked exhausted, like you had sprinted all the way to save me." She pointed out.

"Yeah, and?"

"I'm not trying to sound ungrateful or anything but couldn't Arras have just used his Semblance?" Alex slowed his pace.

"Arras made a mistake, one I'm sure he won't repeat. He did something stupid trying to show off which used up his Aura and that's why I had to run." He spat, anger and disgust clung heavy to his voice. What Alex said didn't really make sense, from what she saw, Arras didn't seem the kind of person to make mistakes. Though during the fight they had he did seem to exaggerate his entrance. Showing off might be something that Arras does regularly.

"How did you find me?" Given how angry the previous subject made Alex, she chose to move on from it.

"Arras is Aura sensitive."

"Ahh, so he sensed my Aura and that's how you found me. Couldn't we use the same technique to find the others?" the young man shook his head.

"Every living thing has an Aura, as you can tell this forest is teeming with life. Picking out someone's Aura here is like trying to find someone's heat source amidst an inferno. Though when someone is in combat, their Aura burns brighter than everything else, making it easier. Arras sensed your Aura not too far away, but then it diminished quickly." His tone was soft, and almost a little sad.

"That's how you knew I was in trouble." She spoke, everything making sense now.

"To be honest, your Aura vanished so quickly that, I had thought you died." The hunter had now stopped moving, his head hung in sorrow. Yang moved up behind the hunter, and punched him in the arm.

"Ow, what was that for!" he yelped spinning to face her.

"You saved my life and we kicked the asses of those monsters. We've had enough bad crap happen today, I won't have you moping." Yang flexed her arms with an over enthusiastic grin on her face. Her attitude was infectious and the young man couldn't help but grin back.

"I suppose your right, things worked out; all we can do is keep moving forward."

"You're damn straight. Now let's find this lake. I'm starting to miss the others."

"Well, you'll see them soon enough." Added the hunter as he started making his way to the co-ordinates. Yang blinked for a moment in confusion, the hunters tone seemed glum again, she slapped her forehead realising what she had just said.

"Hey I'm sure you'll see your team soon enough as well." She spoke as she chased after him.

"I'm fine, you're team might be in a pinch, whereas I know my team is OK." He spoke in an attempt to reassure her.

"Still here I am pining after being separated for three hours, where-as you came here knowing you'd be separated for nearly three months. It must be rough." She added in a gloomy tone as she tried to imagine being away from her friends for so long, the thought left a bitter taste in her mouth.

"I said I'm fine." He repeated.

"You wanna talk about them, might make you feel better?" If she felt this bad imagining being separated from her friends, she could only imagine what it's like for him.

"Did I not just say I was fi-"

"So who was there?" Yang spoke loudly as to drown out the young man's protests. "Razlov right, I remember Miss Goodwitch mentioning him, something about him being the only surviving member?"

Alex let out a heavy sigh, partly from exhaustion and partly from giving up to Yang's persistence. "Yeah, Raz and I go way back, when we lost our friends we stayed a two man team for a while." Alex continued his steady pace through the thick brush.

"Just the two of you, must have been tough."

"Nah not really." He answered waving his hand lackadaisically. "I was the speed and precision and he was the power and strength. We handled anything that was thrown at us." He cut down a set of thick branches with ease, clearing a path and leading them closer to their destination.

"Power and strength huh, so what's he like then?"

Alex paused for a moment and tapped his chin looking pensive, "Well if I had to say I'd say he's a bit like you, unbelievably strong and muscular. He wears heavy armour, not for protection, but because the encumbrance adds a challenge during fights. He swings a massive Warhammer around that uses Dust like Weiss's Rapier." His description of his friend got Yang grinning.

"So who would you say would win in a fight between me and him?" she asked as she began to follow Alex through the forest once more.

"Hmm, that would be a tough one; I'd say…jeez, I dunno it'd be too close to say."

"How close?"

"Let's just say I wouldn't place any bets." Once again the golden haired huntress grinned brightly.

"Oh, I wanna meet him for sure. All right who else was there, Ashton right, you said he was like Ruby." Yang's tone was now giddy and excited like a child's.

"Yeah, they have similar personalities, both are childlike and innocent by nature, and both have a weird obsession with sweets, I've noticed Ruby likes her cookies and Ashton likes his cakes."

"Sounds like him and Ruby could become good friends, so what's his story?" she pried further, the intriguing conversation kept her mind off her exhausted body. She didn't want to notice it, but they were making good progress because of their pace.

"He-he, you probably wouldn't believe me if I told you." He suddenly became defensive about the subject, as he rubbed the back of his head nervously.

"Go on, try me." His reluctance only made her more curious.

"How do I put this, Ash is a member of a reclusive military family, they're hell-bent on training warriors for some prophesized war with the Grimm. They believe that one day the Grimm will rise up and destroy humanity, and when that day comes they'll be the ones to save us all. Even though I said they're reclusive the family recently began sending its youngest hunters on pilgrimages, to learn of the world they were training to protect." He halted his advance and looked at the girl following him, her expression told him everything.

"I'm sorry, what?" she asked in dis-belief.

"I told you, you wouldn't believe me."

"No, no, I believe you it's just that; his background doesn't match his personality. How does a military family produce someone who's childlike and innocent?"

Alex gave her a shrug, "Trust me, Raz and I were just as sceptical as you when we first met him."

"Alright, alright, so let's say he had to duel Ruby, and the prize was an all you can eat buffet of their favourite treat. Who do ya think would win?" Regardless of their upbringing or background, this was the only question Yang truly cared about, how does her team stack against his.

"Ashton." The hunter answered without giving it a second thought.

"Whoa, don't sell Ruby short here, he can't be that good." She retorted, taking offence to how confident he was in his team-mate.

"It's not that he's an amazing hunter, well he is, but what I'm getting at is his Semblance. From a single touch Ash can change the weight of an object. One touch to Ruby's scythe and he'd weight it down to the point where she couldn't lift it, and without her weapon Ruby would be easy pickings." He explained. Yang gritted her teeth, a Semblance like that would be useful in fights.

"What weapon does he use?" she asked as she tried to get a better idea of what kind of hunter this Ashton was.

"A large executioner's blade, a massive sword larger and heavier than Ash himself. And before you ask how he wields it I just told you what his Semblance was." He pointed out, Yang nodded in understanding.

She clicked her fingers, "Yes but, Ruby also has a sniper, she could just fight him at range." She pointed out smugly, this caused Alex to pause for a moment.

"True, Ash's weakness would be ranged combat, he does use a revolver for mid-range, but it's not versatile enough to use at extremes."

"And, throw in Ruby's speed to keep her distance…" she added knowingly.

"Well, maybe it'd be another close call. Still Ash is clever when it comes to battle tactics, he might think of something I can't." he explained to her.

"Ruby's no schmuck either, there's a reason she's our team leader, the tactics she comes up for us are ingenious." Her voice was heavy in pride for her younger sibling.

"Then, I guess Ash and Ruby have more in common than we first thought." He added with a smile.

"So that just leaves, Zinear? From what you've mentioned so far, I get the feeling I'm not gonna like him, also what kind of name is Zinear?"

"Right and Yang is such a normal name." he quickly shot back. "Nah Zin is a good guy, you have nothing to worry about unless you're a girl…oh wait." A sadistic smile slowly appeared on the man's face.

"Urgh, is he like some sort of perv? Is he really bad to women?" Yang made no attempt to hide her distaste.

"Bad? No, unless you think getting hit on constantly is bad, then yeah, he's absolutely awful." The hunter's sadistic grin soon turned into a gleeful smile.

"What the hell are you so pleased about." She asked in frustration, getting the feeling that he was enjoying some inside joke of his at her expense.

"What, oh sorry, I just remembered when we first brought Zin to Foresight. I kid you not; he went round to every female on site and tried to hit on them. I've never seen a man get rejected so many times in such a short space. It was almost inspiring really, no matter what insults or slaps the girls dished out, Zin merely dusted himself off and moved on, not a care in the world."

Yang placed her palm on her face and dragged it down her features, "Please oh please do not bring him to Beacon." She pleaded.

"That's what I was grinning at, the thought of him coming to Beacon, seeing everyone's reaction when he starts putting on the moves." Alex broke into hysterics, the mere thought tipping him over the edge.

"You are a cruel sadistic little man, you know that." She spat through gritted teeth, glaring daggers that the laughing hunter. "Anyway, is he any good at fighting, or is being a perv all he's good for?"

Alex slowly recovered himself, wiped a stray tear from his right eye, and answered. "No, no, Zin is as good as anyone else. And since I know you're gonna ask his weapons are interchangeable arm plates that are kept on both forearms, and they can change shape between three settings. Armoured gauntlets for more powerful punches, a long blade for deadly attacks or shield's for when he need to protect himself. He can mix and match between the three. Two swords one moment, a swords and shield the next and so on." He explained.

"So if he had to fight, say, Weiss, who would win?"

"Weiss." He stated as a matter of fact. Yang was taken a little off guard.

"Oh right then, what about Blake?"

"Blake." Once again he answered without any hesitation.

"Is he really that bad at fights?"

"Only when it comes to fighting girls. That whole hitting on chicks thing, he even does it during fights. The second we have to fight a girl Zin just gives up fighting and tries to smooth talk her, even if she's trying to kill him." The young man shook his head in dis-belief.

"So he just sits there, hitting on a girl while she pummels him?" she asked, not quite believing it herself.

"Pummels him? No, Zin's Semblance increases his reaction times to mere fractions of a second. He also studied nearly every form of combat under the sun. Just by looking at a way a person's muscles contract and relax he can tell which attack is coming before it's even started. Throw in his reaction times and he just dances around the battlefield, dodging her attacks while he attempts to woo her. It's…a unique sight I'll give it that."

"Great, so this guy is an enemy to anyone with a vagina!" she added mockingly as she folded her arms across her chest.

"Well if that's the case then you should be fine." He quickly retorted.

Yang blinked back in surprise. "Did…you just insult me?"

Alex gave a dry chuckle. "You're right; talking about the guys is making me feel better. I almost forgot who I was with, sorry about that. That kind of attitude is the way I am with the team; we're always mocking each other." He added shyly, gently rubbing the back of his head.

"So what, this whole time you've been faking your personality?" her voice filled with dis-belief that this whole time it was just an act. Realising the misunderstanding he quickly threw his hands up.

"No, nonononono, just the insulting part I hid. I wasn't exactly sure how you guys would react, I mean we've only known each other for a while so…" his voice trailing off.

Yang responded with a wide grin, "You shouldn't hide who you are from me, the others won't mind either, well except the Ice Queen. But, if you get to show your true self, then that means Team RWBY gets to show theirs." Her grin was becoming unnerving and Alex felt a chill run down his spine.

"What…do you mean?"

The large blonde leaned in close, "Pranks."

"Pranks?"

"Pranks." She repeated.

He took a step back. "What does that mean?" he asked hesitantly.

"Oh, you'll find out soon enough." Her grin never wavering.

"Why do I get the feeling I just made a huge mistake." Sighing in resignation, Alex continued on, while the cheerful Yang followed close behind.

"So your pervy friend, if he refuses to fight girls doesn't that mean he's useless against my team. If that's the case then it's technically four against three, I sense a victory in my future~" she sang out gleefully. The hunter spun on his feet, and with a cheery smile of his own, patted Yang on the head.

"Aww, it's almost like you forgot about Arras." And with that he spun back around and continued forward. She stuck her tongue out behind his back.

"So what's Zinear like then, apart from the whole, 'he's a dog' thing. Guessing from what I know so far, I'd say, he's a nice guy towards you? Why else would he be on your team."

Laughter filled the forest, blending itself with the calls of the wildlife. Shaken for a moment Yang froze in her tracks as once again, the green hunter succumbed to hysterics. "A nice guy? You have gotta be kidding me. Zin? He's ruthless; he makes Arras look like choir boy."

"_Hey! I take offence to that!"_

"What! But, he's a pervert, how can he also be like Arras?" she asked, not quite believing such a huge gap in personalities.

Alex merely gave her a shrug, "What can I say, towards women he's a flirtatious moron, but when it comes to his enemies, he's ruthless. Kills most targets merely on sight, and shows next to no hesitation in doing so." He stated as a matter of fact.

Yang shook her head, "But you hate Arras for the way he is, and you can't change that since you share the same body, so why would you choose to have someone just like him on your team?"

"Because Zinear is willing to change." He responded, "If you had asked him a year ago who his friends were he'd say no-one, that he trusted no-one. Ask him now and he'll give you three names. Sure he's a wildcard, and has a tendency to dive head first into bloodshed, but at least he tries to stay his hand and he follows my orders, mostly. Arras on the other hand can't resist killing anything in his way; in fact, I'm surprised Arras has gone this long without killing anything. No joke, this is a personal best for him."

The blonde huntress once again shook her head in dis-belief. "A military raised kid with the innocence of a child, a pervy womaniser who's also a ruthless murderer and a team leader with two souls. You know I'm starting to feel sorry for Razlov, poor guy is the only normal one in a team of freaks." She sighed with her hands placed on her hips.

"Ha, you think Raz is normal, you know there's a reason I didn't tell you what his Semblance was." He grinned knowingly.

She blinked for a moment as she racked her brain, he was right, Ashton could change something's weight merely by touch and Zinear could increase his reflexes, he mentioned nothing of Razlov's. "Wait, then what is it?" the green hunter tapped his nose. "No, that's not cool; you can't pique my curiosity like that and leave me hanging!" she protested, making a lunge for the hunter who leapt away, sensing another play fight Alex stuck his middle finger at her. "Oh I am going to make you choke on that finger!" even with a threat she couldn't hide her joy, a playful grin worn on her face.

"Ooh, kinky~" He added, coyly, leaping out of her range as she attempted to grab him. Yang chased him through the trees of Emerald Forest as he leapt and dodged each grapple.

"They teach you how to run like a coward at Foresight?!" she yelled after him as he broke into a sprint away from her.

"Only from wild, rampaging bulls! So this is kinda like the same thing, right?" he yelled back sticking his tongue out at her.

"Oh you little…" her target came to an abrupt halt.

"Wait, Yang listen!"

"I won't fall for your trick!" she bellowed as she charged full speed towards him.

The young man threw his arms up to stop her, "No seriously, cool it and lis- ARGH" the juggernaut slammed into his chest causing them to tumble onto the ground in a heap of limbs.

"Ow…" complained the huntress as she attempted to untangle herself. "Alex, you okay?" she asked worriedly.

"-eese -et off –e!" came a muffled voice, she also felt a tickling vibration under her left breast. Looking down she saw the poor man's heads smothered with it.

"Oh crap, sorry!" she quickly apologised pulling herself off, Alex quickly gasped in precious air.

"I don't care what some guys say, that is _not_ an awesome way to die." He joked as his breath gradually returned to him.

"You almost died? Guess I shouldn't have gotten off then."

Flat on his back the hunter held his hand towards the sky, "Alexander Cross, hunter of Foresight and team leader of AZRA. Died of suffocation by breasts. You know I may have been wrong, that has a nice ring to it."

Yang gave a small chuckle, before her ears pricked at a suspicious sound, "Hey you here that? Sounds like, running water?"

The winded hunter propped himself up with his elbows, "That's what I was trying to tell you before you body slammed me." Picking himself up he quickly moved through the trees with Yang close behind. The sounds of water grew louder until they broke through the tree line. Shimmering blue water, reflecting the sunlight coursed passed the two hunters. It was nearly a hundred meters wide; carving a path through the thick green forest, the contrast in colours was a sight to behold.

"It's…beautiful." She muttered in awe. Her partner merely smiled as he watched her features closely, her lilac eyes shimmering with the blue light of the river.

"I said the same thing when I first saw it." he admitted, admiring the rivers beauty.

"Shame we can't drink the water and top up our water canteens." she mused as she remembered some disturbing facts about the kinds of bacteria and viruses that lurked in river water, facts Alex had taught her before the mission.

"Don't worry, we have enough water in our canteens to last us a day, so we shouldn't be too worried." he reassured the huntress.

She nodded in agreement, "And our rations are more than enough to last a day. Guess that means we can focus on the task at hand."

Alex made his way along the river's edge. "Hey where are you going?" Yang called after him.

"Towards the lake, where else?" he yelled back. She studied the river; he was walking in the opposite direction of the water flow.

"Doesn't the river flow into the lake?" she asked catching up to him.

"Nope, this one flows from it, trust me. Besides we won't make it there tonight." he informed her pointing towards the sun. Sure enough the first day was coming to an end. The orange orb was making its way slowly towards the horizon, the resulting light beginning to burn the sky orange. "Not to mention it will rain soon, we need to find shelter and soon."

Yang gave a confused look as she studied the sky, sure there were a few clouds lazily trailing the sky, but nothing that told her it was going to rain soon. "Are you sure you're not wrong?"

* * *

"He wasn't wrong." She grumbled as the heavy rain drops battered against her body. Mere moments after he warned her, a thunderous rainstorm struck without warning. The sky turned grey and before she had noticed heavy rain pounded against her head.

"Here." Alex unclipped his jacket and threw it over her head shielding her from the rain. She watched as the rain battered against his body matting his brown hair to his face.

"What about you?" she asked hesitantly.

He merely shrugged, "The rain is warm, and I still have my other jacket. Besides, I don't care if my hair gets wet, I know how much you care about yours, and this rain can't be good for it." Alex gave a heart-warming smile. Something tight gripped at Yang's heart. A feeling she had never felt before. She cast her eyes downwards demurely.

"Th-thanks." She clutched the jacket tightly around her.

"Anyway, we're almost there." Speaking, Alex moved back over to the rock face. Shorty after the rainstorm started they had left the river's edge as he led her to a large rock formation covered mostly by green foliage. If it hadn't have been for Alex, she would have never have noticed it, considering its vast size. Dragging his hand along the edge he slowly made his way around the massive rock face. He quickly removed a blade and began to cut some of the foliage away.

With a wide grin he turned to her, "I found it, I can't believe I actually found it!"

Beyond the foliage was a cave, pitch black and a strong smell of damp. Igniting his arm in fire he led her inside. A short tunnel several metres long before it opened up into a wide cavern, the green fire illuminating the dark surfaces of the cave. It was quite large in terms of size with plenty of headroom to stand within, and easily the size of a large room. Yang noticed all manners of junk piled against the walls.

"What is this place?" she asked out of curiosity.

"Originally? I'm not sure; I always believed it was some sort of smugglers cave which had long been since abandoned." The smugglers theory would explain all the useless junk, "But more recently, it was my home during my initiation."

She looked at him in shock, "You lived in a cave for three months?"

"Yup." He answered with a smile on his face, "I honestly never thought I'd be back here." He spoke as he dragged his hand along the cold wall, clearly lost in his memories.

The sound of the rainstorm grew louder and fiercer, with his jacket still clung tightly around her, she gave a worried look to the cave's entrance. "I sure hope the others are OK…" she muttered, worriedly. Orange light illuminated the cave. Gathering some wood from the pile of junk, Alex had set up a fire in the middle of the cave.

"During the night it can get a bit chilly, here." Removing a blanket, he shook it hard before setting it on the floor. "You can sleep here, I know it's not much but it's better than the cold hard floor." That same feeling crept through her body as she watched him set up a bed for her. He sat himself on the ground, removing a small packet from a pouch. Tearing it open he got stuck into his rations. He glanced over at Yang who was still stood watching him, "You should do the same if you wanna keep up your strength."

"Oh, right." She quickly walked over and set down on the blanket. Removing a packet of her own, she began to eat its contents. They both carried several packets of rations, each containing a different source of food. They had fruit bars, dried apricots, dried peaches, roasted salted peanuts and dried high-quality cuts of beef, lightly salted and spiced. Given the time of day, both were gorging on the strips of beef. Once finished they washed it down with water. All in all, it wasn't a bad meal considering their location.

"Alright, we should get some sleep." He suggested patting his stomach, "We'll get up nice an early tomorrow and look for the others. How does that sound?" he asked her as he got to his feet.

"Sounds good, what are you doing?" she asked, growing curious as to why he was stood up.

"We're still in a rainforest remember, though it's unlikely we could still get attacked, and I'm not taking any chances after our last encounter. You get some sleep for now and I'll take first watch. We'll rotate every two hours, sound good?"

She began to look pensive, "Here, thanks for letting me borrow it." She spoke as she handed him his jacket.

He waved his hand dismissively, "You keep hold of it for now, as I said it can get a bit chilly and your arm and leg are still exposed." Before she could protest he walked away, heading through the small tunnel he vanished into the darkness as he began his first watch.

She hesitated for a moment, not really sure what to do with herself. Shaking her head as if to shake the cobwebs in her mind loose she laid down on the blanket. Curling up with his jacket draped over her like a duvet, she closed her eyes.

_Why? Why are you being so damn kind to me? And what the hell is this feeling!? Damn you Alex, saving me, protecting me, caring for me…Urgh, just forget about him and get some sleep._

…

_Damn, even his jacket smells of him. How am I supposed to get to sleep now!_

* * *

Alex sat at the edge of the entrance, leaning against the cave wall. The foliage obscured most of his view of outside, but a small window in the 'curtain' allowed him some glimpse of the forest. Peering out, the sun had all but set, as the sky grew darker. He sighed in relief though, the sounds of rain was very welcome. He always found comfort in listening to the rain, it never rained at Beacon, nearly two months and only scattered showers, nothing like this though. Drawing a deep breath he let his body relax.

"_You're acting like an addict and rain is your drug."_

"Wouldn't be a bad way to describe it." He answered his other half. Arras sighed in understanding; after all, he was the same way when it came to the moon. A shame it was a cloudy night.

"_You have no intention of rotating shifts do you?"_

"Was it really that obvious?" he asked, glancing back in towards the cave, the orange flames illuminated the cave and a curled up Yang draped in a green jacket could be seen sleeping soundly.

"_I can almost feel how much you care for her, must be a strong emotion." _He pointed out.

"She's had a rough day, she needs the rest. Besides, she did ask about the guys back home; it made me happy just to talk about them. I wonder…" with a sudden idea Alex opened his scroll that was attached to his left forearm and began to type out a message.

"_The Elders prohibited communication between you and the guys. You know the reason why." _Arras warned him.

"Nothing major, just something to let them know I'm alive and well." Finished typing out his message he ran a program which encrypted its contents. Only a Foresight member with the encryption key would be able to read the message, another piece of tech gifted to Foresight by the S.D.C. Selecting Razlov as the recipient he tapped send. A small green bar with the letter 'SENT' flashed up on screen. Closing his scroll he gently rested his head against the wall.

"We should get some rest too; you need to replenish your Aura." He spoke to his partner. Staring out into the rain drenched forest; he glanced up at the blackened sky. Dark clouds parted revealing the shimmering broken orb, its ethereal light staining the tree-tops. "I don't know what those creatures were that attacked Yang, but I get the feeling that this trip is gonna get worse before it gets better."

* * *

**A/N Sorry for the lengthy chapters here. Would you believe me if I said I really do try to keep them short?**

**Anyway thanks for reading my story so far, it means a lot to me, so thanks again :) **

**Last chapter I mentioned**** that two other guys were writing stories for other members of Alex's team. Well Razlov's and Ashton's have already been uploaded with a chance at Zinear's too. Well if you wanna check out their amazing work so far all you have to do is type the title into the search bar:**

**_Foresight: Lunar Hunter_. **

**This is the title of Razlov's story which takes place at the same time as Alex's and follows what he and the other members are up to during their leaders absence. The story goes deeper into the lore of Foresight and how it is run and is also an amazing first glimpse of what Alex's team is really like. You'll also get to learn what's so special about his Semblance and you'll also get to see what Alex put in his message for him.**

_**Foresight: Ashton and the Clave. **_

**Follows, you guessed it, Ashton. This story is set two years prior to current events and follows Ashton as he takes his first steps beyond his families protective walls, eventually leading to his first meeting with Alex and Razlov. This story shows Geralt for the first time as well as glimpses of who was responsible for the creatures that attacked Yang in my story.**

**Sadly I had some artwork of the team to show but I don't know how to go about doing that *Sad face***

**Anyway, I hope you decide to give their stories a read, as they really are amazing stories. Until next time :)  
**


	12. The Eternity Forest: Part 3

**A/N Okay so before you get into this just a few quick things;**

**1\. Yes it has been many months since my last chapter, how many isn't very important right now, just know that hopefully, thanks to some new motivation -Hime- I have finally started writing again.**

**2\. This chapter is veeeeery long, so to help I've added numbered breaks, when you reach a break just remember it's number and you can easily find where you left off.**

**3\. Last of all, you may need to read previous chapters to refresh yourselves, again, sorry for the delay.**

**Enjoy.**

* * *

**The Eternity Forest Part 3**

Snapping teeth and slashing claws, they cut and bit into her. Blood, her blood, stained their teeth. They cut, ripped and pulled her apart. Slashing, gnawing, biting, devouring. She kicked and screamed yet it never ended. Horror upon horror, pain and anguish, suffering and regret. It built up until…

"Ahhhhhh!" Yang screamed as she bolted upright. Her hand immediately clutched her chest, her racing heart beating beneath her palm. Fear gripped at her as she stared harrowed at her surroundings. Slowly memories came back to her, and as her eyes slowly adjusted to the dimly illuminated cavern she remembered where she was.

"T-that's right. I fell asleep in this cave." She quietly muttered to herself as her heart and breathing settled back into a more appropriate rate, she quickly drank in her surroundings. The remains of a camp fire feebly tried it's best to illuminate the cave. Reaching for her scroll she quickly checked the time. "Whaaaaa! Six hours!" she bellowed as she shot to her feet. Stamping her way to the entrance, the man she was hunting was nowhere to be found. "Where did that son of a bitch go?" Quickly pulling back the foliage she scanned her immediate surroundings. It was still dark and the moonlight was blocked by the clouds. "Tch." Gritting her teeth she retreated back inside. "Dumbass, absolute dumbass. I should've known he'd pull a stunt like this." Yang slowly crushed her right fist with her left hand, cracking her knuckles. "I'll make you sorry…"

"Sorry for what?" Startled by the sudden voice, Yang snapped to. Alex was stood near the entrance, a dozen or so sticks and branches cradled in his arms, a look of curiosity on his face. Yang stamped her way over to him. In one forceful motion she grabbed him by his collar, lifted him up off the ground, causing him to drop his sticks, and slammed him against the wall.

"Whoa, jeez, what the hell Yang, chill!" Alex grabbed at her hands but it was useless, the girl had far more strength than him.

"Chill! You were supposed to wake me in two hours, what time do you call this?!" she yelled in his face.

"I just thought-"

"What? That I needed looking after! That a girl like me needs charity! I don't need your pity Alex; treat me as your equal, not as some damsel in distress!" Yang cut him off before she heard another word of his excuse.

"But only you can save your friends." His response was calm and soft, yet sounded more powerful than Yang's unnecessary shouting. Yang released him, causing him to land with a soft thud. Taking a few steps back she stared into his eyes.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I can't interfere with this mission more than I already have, I shouldn't help you save your friends, hell, I wasn't even supposed to save you. So you need all the strength you can get, your friends might depend on it. As for me, who cares if I go a night without sleep, right?" he gave a small chuckle at the end as he bashfully rubbed the back of his head.

"I care!" Grabbing him once again by the collar she dragged him over to the make shift bed. "Now, lie down" she ordered.

"But the fire-"

"I'll take care of it, now lie down!" realizing he wasn't going to win, Alex reluctantly unclipped his weapons and quivers, laying them down next to the blankets before settling down himself. Almost immediately the fatigue hit him like a crashing wave, letting out a long yawn in the process. "Now sleep! I'll wake you at sun rise."

"Fine…fine…you win…I guess I'll get…" and just like that, Alex fell asleep.

"Jeez, it really was all a front eh? Who knows how ragged you would have run yourself if I didn't do something." Watching him for a few moments she collected the scattered pieces of fire wood, gently placing one at a time on the dying embers. Soon enough the fire was brought back to life, a healthy flame spewing out, adding some much needed warmth and light to the cavern.

Yang sat herself against the far wall, watching the young man's chest rise and fall as he slipped further into his slumber. Her eyes glanced over her arm and leg, the clothing torn from the vicious attacks. "What…were those creatures?" her question fading into the air. "If it wasn't for Alex…" her mind wandered, harsh images of the snapping jaws and slashing claws, the memory of pain tearing through her body. The young girl quickly shook her head from those thoughts. Pain wasn't anything new to her, but the feeling of her flesh being torn was unimaginable. Looking passed her limbs she spotted Alex's weapons on the floor. Curiosity got the better of her and she quickly slid over to them; gently she picked up one of his blades. "It's really light." She mumbled to herself. She carefully examined the curved blade, running both her fingers and her eyes along its length.

"Ow!" she quietly yelped, lost in admiration she thoughtlessly ran her finger across the blade, cutting herself in the process. In seconds, however, her Aura had healed the tiny cut. "It looks like my Aura is fully charged." Her eyes drifted to the sleeping hunter, "Thanks for the extra-long kip, I guess." Placing the blade gently on the ground she began to fumble with his quivers. Both were made out of thick sturdy leather with his typical green colour and black trimming along the seams, and were nearly as long as her arm. Picking up one she started to examine the arrows. All of them had the same fletching comprised of three different colours, it started off black, before fading into a light grey before turning green. The shaft itself was all black, with a large metallic arrow head. She quickly spun the arrow between her fingers, before placing back into its quiver. Placing the quiver on the ground she retrieved the other one. She quickly noticed its extra weight, and that not all fletches were identical. Growing more curious she gently removed one of the arrows. It appeared to be like the others yet it had a small black box attached to it, with a black cable attached to the arrow. She placed it on the ground before removing the next. Once again it appeared to be a normal arrow, though this one was larger and thicker than the rest and its tip was see through with a thick beige substance held inside.

"What…are these…?" she quickly retrieved the next arrow only to freeze in horror. The fletching was a dark blue and the shaft was pure white, the arrow head appeared to be made out of hollow glass and held within was a dark blue powder. "Arc dust?" Yang wasn't exactly a genius when it came to the different types of dust, but between school and Weiss she had a basic grasp of what exactly Arc dust was. "If I remember correctly, Arc Dust is no more than Dust that's far too volatile to hold a stable element, which when charged with Aura ends up detonating violently, the dust over excites the electrons in the air which gives it that lightening look. See Weiss, told you I'd remember your stupid lecture." Yang gave a quick glance around at her surroundings, "And look who's talking to themselves…" she added in a quieter tone.

Yang continued to gawk at the white arrow, if her knowledge was correct there was enough Dust in that arrow to erase a city block. "Why do you have an arrow like this?" she mused to herself.

"Whatcha doin'?" called out Alex in a childish voice. Yang almost screamed in surprise, quickly shoving the arrow back into its quiver. However when she noticed a set of red eyes staring at her, her attitude quickly changed.

"Oh it's you, what the hell do you want?" she spat.

Arras frowned at her tone, obviously displeased with the way she addressed him. "Didn't anyone ever tell you it's rude to go through people's belongings without their permission?" he chided her.

Yang scoffed at his remark "Didn't anyone ever tell you it's rude to spy on people?"

"I wasn't spying; I only just woke up now." His retort was quick.

"Why the hell are you even awake anyway, shouldn't you be resting as well?"

"Oh, no need to worry about me; I slept soundly while Alex was keeping a very close eye on you." Arras added that last part with a suggestive look on his face; sadly for him Yang didn't take the bait.

"Well shouldn't you sleep so the body can rest, it can't be good for it to constantly be in use?"

"I am resting the body; see how I'm not moving."

"You're moving your lips, which is too much for my liking."

"Come now Yang, I have to be awake, who knows what you might do to Alex's poor defenceless body." His words were added with another suggestive grin, this time Yang took the bait.

"Like hell I'd do _that_." She quickly shot back.

"Shut it Yang." Arras's tone quickly became extremely harsh and serious, its sudden change throwing Yang off balance. "The reason I'm here is to talk about Torchprick."

"Jeez, and you wonder why I hate you." The huntress quietly muttered under her breath. "Well you should have said so in the first place, learn anything new?"

His eyes gazed at the cavern ceiling above, "Not yet, information on his whereabouts must be kept under tight lock, so far no one has spilled anything but their guts." He glanced at her from the corner of his eyes to catch her shocked reaction.

"Arras! You promised Blake you wouldn't kill!" She spat through gritted teeth, unusually her tone was rather quiet, it was as if she believed she could somehow wake up Alex.

"Relax F-cup, no-ones died, just seriously maimed or injured." With his calm tone he may as well have been describing the weather. Yang's only response was a disapproving shake of her head.

"I still don't like keeping Alex in the dark about this." She spoke, voicing her concerns.

"And I didn't want to bring you in on this, but we all have to make compromises." He quickly retorted. Yang let out a hefty sigh, her way of saying she'd given up.

"Mind telling me why Alex is carrying an arrow like this?" she asked retrieving the Arc arrow from its quiver. The hunter eyed the arrow, deliberating whether to tell her or not. Eventually he gave a shrug.

"What the hell, that arrow has only one intended target, I'm sure your familiar with his name by now?" he asked, locking his gaze with her.

"Geralt."

"Bingo."

Yang shook her head, "Don't you think something like this is a bit much?"

"You have to understand, overkill isn't a term I'd use when it comes to dealing with that monster. You either give it your all or die." His tone told Yang that he wasn't joking.

"You guys seemed to have survived encounters with him before?"

"That's because there's a secret third option called, run away and don't look back, even if it means turning your back on the idiots that try to stop him."

Yang almost leapt to her feet in rage, "What the hell! You're telling me you abandon people just to escape!" Yang's fury was so intense that her eyes had turned red. Even so Arras just looked at her with a soft gaze.

"Know this; nobody wants to die a pointless death. How many people do you know who'd give their lives to fight something they couldn't possibly beat, not only that, but add the fact that their sacrifice would mean nothing. If Azara died fighting him, nothing would change, Geralt would still carry on doing whatever he'd do after he killed Alex, but their deaths wouldn't be worth it. Geralt kills a few civilians here and there but mostly it's Law Enforcement that gets in his way. What eases our conscious is that Azara save a lot of lives through their missions, which outweighs a few deaths here and there. Alex believes that his actions made Geralt the psychopath he is today, he blames himself for everything he does, and his victims weigh on Alex's mind like a black stain. He's not strong enough to face that monster, but when he is he'll give it everything he's got, but he won't do it if there's no chance of success, even if it costs him his life as long as Geralt dies he'll go for it, and I'll be right there with him."

Yang slowly closed her eyes and when she opened them they had returned to their lilac colour. "Well, I guess that makes sense, I suppose it can't be easy running away."

"No, it's not." He added in a strict tone, clearly Arras wasn't a huge fan of it either.

"Sorry for yelling, guess I got a little worked up there."

"Don't worry; a lot of people at Foresight call us cowards when they hear we ran away, we're used to it." Hearing that they held so little respect in their comrade's eyes, Yang looked at Arras with a sense of pity. "Hey, don't give me that look; they just don't understand what it is we're up against. When we fight Geralt we do our absolute best, it's not like we run screaming to the hills the second he shows up, what we _actually _do is lure him away from populated areas before retreating!" By now Arras' voice was growing louder and his face was distorted with anger, "I mean, what's wrong with wanting to stay alive, if we die needlessly then whose going to save all those people!? Huh? The ones who just sit back with their comfy little lives while we fight monsters just to keep them safe! We tangled with Geralt and came back alive, the first thing they should do is praise us!" With ragged breathing and gritted teeth Arras yelled his words of anger into the air; Yang was taken back by his sudden outburst.

"Still-" Yang thought as she looked at the Arc arrow, "Isn't something like this a little extreme, I mean how powerful is he really?" Her question needed a better answer than 'Very'; Arras closed his eyes, calmed his nerves and thought for a moment.

"At Foresight, we're taught to treat our Aura like any other muscle in our body; I assume you're familiar with how your muscles grow stronger?"

"Of course, heavy stress on the muscles causes them to break down; when they repair, the body over compensates to protect the muscle from future stress."

Arras gave a small snigger, "Your answer sounds like it was taken straight from an exercise book." The huntress frowned at him, "Either way you are correct, it's the same with your Aura, we're trained to put a lot of stress on our Aura's through combat or other means. When it recharges it's that little bit stronger, of course you won't notice it for the first few months, most newbies even doubt it works at first, that is until half a year later and they suddenly find themselves lasting in fights that'd have them out in seconds. Now take a boy at the tender age of 14, and for the next three decades train him every day, what Aura do you think that type of person would have? If your answer is 'a very strong aura' then you're a few adjectives short."

"So what you're saying is his defences are impregnable?"

"That's what it feels like anyway, during a particularly chaotic fight in which we had only just met Ashton, he crushed Geralt with a car three times its original weight, and all it did was piss him off. Zinear tried slamming a Bulldog into him at full speed; he may as well of hit him with a tennis ball. His strength not only lies in his Aura but also his Semblance." Arras left his sentence open ended to invite Yang's curiosity.

"And…what's his Semblance?" she immediately asked with a hint of impatience.

The hunter gave a sly smirk, "That's easy to explain, it's the same as yours."

Yang's eyes widened. "You're kidding me right!"

"Well I suppose 'same' isn't the right word, more 'similar'. From our entertaining little duel, which I won-" he added with a wink "I couldn't help but notice your Semblance, you can absorb damage from an attack and use it to increase your own strength, am I on the right track?" Arras spoke with a condescending tone, like royalty addressing a commoner.

The blonde huntress nodded meekly, "Yeah, I can absorb an attack and then use that to power my own." She explained, ignoring his attitude.

"Right, the difference is Geralt absorbs the energy of an attack, but how he releases that energy is entirely up to him. He could use it like you do, and increase his strength, or he could release it through his legs and increase his speed." He finished explaining.

"But if our Semblances are similar, couldn't you beat him the same way you did me, just overwhelm his Semblance till it gives out." The huntress quickly pointed out

"We've long suspected that would be the easiest path; however his massive amounts of Aura prevent that from happening. To drain his Aura we need to hit him with something massive, an attack so powerful even his Aura couldn't withstand it. So far though nothing gets through-"

"And then he's now stronger from your attack and overpowers you instead." Yang finished, finally understanding their dilemma. "It's almost terrifying to think there's someone so strong out there."

"It's even more terrifying knowing he wants you dead." added the young man. He let out a yawn as he stretched his tired muscles. "Huh? What do you know; I'm still tired after all." He gently rested his palms on his stomach and closed his eyes, "Wake me when the sun rises."

"Yeah, yeah, I got it." Yang replied.

"And don't touch his equipment, pervert!"

"What? How does touching his arrows make me a pervert?!"

"That's not the equipment I was talking about." He added coyly. Yang let out a disgusted sigh, but before she could reply the young hunters breath resumed it slow steady pace. No doubt Arras had retreated leaving Alex's sleeping conscious in charge. Letting the matter drop, the huntress rested herself back up against the wall, and quietly waited for the new mornings rays.

* * *

**Break One**

* * *

The following morning found the two hunters continuing on their journey towards the Blue Diamond lake, Alex led the way as usual whilst Yang followed close behind. Cutting the thick brush with his blades he looked back at the young woman. "You alright back there?"

"Yeah, all ready and good to go." She replied, giving a wide grin and thumbs up. Alex smiled in return. After she woke him, Yang and Alex quickly ate their small breakfast along with some water from their canteens, and promptly set off for their destination. It had been half an hour since they departed and already the morning sun was becoming unbearable, the thick, fog like air seemed to stick to Yang's body, making her feel humid and heavy. A warm bed and a cold shower sounded nice round about now. Her thoughts immediately turned to Alex, not even twenty-four hours in and she already couldn't wait to leave.

"Yet he spent three months surviving here…" she muttered to herself, "The very thought of spending that much time here alone sounds like torture, yet he carries himself like any other student, you almost wouldn't believe half the things he's gone through based on his personality. Hmm, maybe it's something you have to go through to really understand." Realising that thinking about it wasn't going to solve anything, she gave a shrug. "Hey Alex, are we there yet?" She complained, the heat beginning to make her sweat, which in turn made her itchy and irritable.

"We'll get there soon; just hold on a little longer." He replied. A thought struck the huntress; she quickly approached him till she was right behind him.

"Say, given that it's called _Eternity _Forest, I assume that means it's quite large." Her tone was light and playful giving that she already knew the answer to a silly question.

"Why yes, you are correct Yang, however did you know?" replied Alex in an equally sarcastic tone.

"I know, I'm such a clever girl." She smirked flinging her hair back, a motion that reminded him of Weiss, he could only assume she was mocking her at this point. "So doesn't that mean this lake could be miles away, it could be hours before we reach it." As she spoke she looked up through the sun filtered treetops, apart from the river nearby there was no obvious landmarks that signaled their imminent arrival.

"Have a little faith in me Yang, you're kinda hurting my pride here." He joked as he mockingly clutched his chest. "Anyway, the thought struck me too, but given the fact that one of your missions was to retrieve a relic at a body of water, I can only assume your drop points took that into account, dropping you near, if not in walking distance of your destination."

"What if we couldn't locate this lake, this forest is massive?" she pointed out.

"That's the whole point of the mission, to forge and establish a plan of action based on little to no Intel. Trust me, you better get used to this kind of thing in the future."

Given his advice Yang looked a little pensive, "Does that mean…that I'm cheating, by having you lead me there?"

Alex stopped and thought for a moment before shaking his head, "I don't think so; you're using what's available around you to accomplish your mission, mainly me. You're expected to accomplish your mission any means necessary. Using someone's Intel is better than going it your own. Besides, I'm stuck here either way; I'll need your help later seeing as I don't know where the pick-up point is." Alex quickly explained adding a smile at the end to reassure her. Yang breathed a small sigh of relief.

_You're right Alex; I'm just using what resources I have. If this was a real mission, taking a guide into this forest would be better than wandering in without a clue._

With her mind at ease their trek resumed, "Say Al, don't suppose you got an E.T.A?"

The hunter raised his blade to clear away a wall of foliage, "I'd say within the hour, as long as we don't run into any-" swinging his blade the foliage fell away exposing a small clearing with a dozen Grimm lazing around "-delays" he added with a sigh. Noticing their arrival, the Grimm picked themselves up. They were a meter high, hunched over on four, gangly, black legs; their bodies were small and slim. They looked like larger, nastier version of the local monkeys you see in certain parts of the world.

"We don't have time to fight; we should be saving our energy." Alex pointed out, readying a flashbang arrow to allow for an easy escape. However his partner had other ideas, slamming her fists together she stepped into the clearing as if it was a boxing ring.

"C'mon Alex, this is how I get fired up. A quick fight here will have me ready for anything."

Sensing he wasn't gonna win he let out another sigh and with a smile added, "You remind me more of Raz with each second. Fine, but make this quick, we haven't got all day." With an excited grin on her face, Yang rushed the nearest Grimm and the fight commenced.

Exactly three minutes and forty-eight seconds later, not that Alex was counting, the duo were on their way again. The huntress stretched her arms into the air. "Ahh, that hit the spot, I feel limbered up now."

"Aren't you supposed to stretch before a fight?"

"Before, after, it's all the same to me."

The duo had only made it a mile before another pack of similar Grimm showed up, swinging in from the trees and blocking their route. "Argh, I was afraid of this." The young hunter complained.

"Afraid of what?" asked Yang.

"The Grimm, they're being drawn by emotion."

"I thought Grimm were only drawn to negative emotions?" she asked, unsure of herself.

"They are, it's my negative emotion of how sick I am of delays."

Yang lightly punched him on the arm, "Then cheer up, maybe you should join me on this one, blow off some steam, and ease some tension."

"_There's only one way I can think of easing tension and it involves less clothing." _Arras quickly retorted.

Alex stretched and placed his hands on the back of his head. "Nah, I usually let my lackeys do all the heavy lifting. Go on lackey, go on, get!"

"I am not some dog at your command!" she snapped back.

"But you are gonna go get them, aren't you?" Begrudgingly, Yang moved forward, while quietly muttering something Alex could only assume was a nasty remark. "There's a good girl." He quietly added. The huntress shot him a glare.

"_She heard that."_

A few minutes later the duo continued their journey. This time Alex walked, beaming from ear to ear.

"What's got you in such a good mood?" the huntress asked.

"You." He replied as a matter of fact. His blunt answer caused Yang to halt in her tracks, her cheeks flushing slightly.

"M-me?" she asked, bemused.

"Yeah, you asked me to cheer up, so this is me cheering up." He explained.

Yang let out a sigh. "Oh, so that's why."

* * *

**Break Two**

* * *

As the team broke though the tree line they came to the jagged edge of a cliff that was nearly a hundred foot drop. Stretching out below in all directions was nothing but more forest. From their birds eye view they could see the fog of humidity lingering above the tree tops, as winged Grimm and other birds could be seen flying high, looking for prey. Several miles away the ground sloped upwards into a large hill. Alex pointed his finger directly at it.

"Just beyond that hill lies our destination, Blue Diamond." He turned to face the huntress who grinned excitedly to herself.

"…and with any luck, the rest of my team." Yang added.

"Nope, they're there." He pointed out lowering his finger slightly to just above the base of the hill. Yang followed his finger and squinted her eyes, but from this distance all she could make out was the green of the treetops, the humid fog didn't help either.

"What are you even pointing at?" she asked confused.

"Your team, they're right there." Yang focused harder but to no avail.

"Are you sure?" she asked, a hint of scepticism in her voice.

Alex sighed, placing his hands on his hips. "I am one hundred percent sure. All three of them by the looks of it, they're engaged with Grimm." Alex leaned a little closer, "A lot of Grimm at that, looks like a nest."

Yang's eyes widened in disbelief "Wait, so you really can see them at this distance, through the trees and the fog?"

"That's what I'm trying to tell you. Looks like they could do with a hand, they've bitten off more than they can chew."

"How bad is it?" she asked.

"They haven't closed the mouth of the cave to the nest; my guess is that entire hill is one massive underground network. The Grimm are flooding out, preventing them from sealing it."

Hearing the dire situation her team was in, Yang's entire body became tense. "Then what the hell are we waiting for, we gotta help!" she exclaimed running towards the ledge.

"Hey!" Alex quickly yelled, halting her in her tracks. "Remember what I said, I can't help you. This is something you need to do as a team." He informed the eager huntress. Turning to face him, she held a look of dis-belief.

"Are you serious, you just said that entire hill is a massive nest, we can't do this on our own!" Alex looked away from her eyes, refusing to back down Yang leaned in front of his vision till her face was all he could see. "And wasn't it you who said hunter's complete their mission by using the resources available? You're available and I'm asking for your help!"

Sighing in resignation the hunter walked to the edge of the cliff, "Fine, but I'll stay here and lend fire support." He spoke as he turned to face her.

"From here?" she asked in dis-belief. He nodded his answer. Deciding not to question it Yang shook her head.

"Before you go…" Alex removed the earpiece from his scroll and popped it in his right ear, catching on Yang did the same. Activating his team-speak he linked with any nearby scrolls. Yang beeped at the sound of an incoming connection. "We should probably stay in contact so you can direct my fire support."

"Got it!" she exclaimed bolting for the cliffs edge, the second she jumped she fired Ember Celica behind her, catapulting her into the air and soaring towards her team. Constant booms could be heard from her Gauntlets as she extended her flight.

Now left alone at the cliffs edge, Alex took a deep breath. He gently removed his twin blades attaching them together at the hilt. With his staff held vertically in his extended left arm he reached into one of his quivers and drew his first arrow. Placing its black shaft against his bow he began to gently slide it back. A small white glyph hummed to life as it built up energy within the arrow. Alex strained as the acceleration glyph desperately tried to launch the arrow, but he continued to draw it back, till his right hand reached his chin. With the arrow fully drawn, the white glyph buzzing loudly and his eyes set on his target, he breathed out…

…and released the arrow.

The ground erupted from the sonic boom as the arrow burst the sound barrier upon release, the air pressure whipping at Alex, blowing his coat. The black arrow cut a path through the fog, causing it to swirl, it shattered the tree tops, screeching towards its target, and with a resounding clap it hit its mark.

Moments before, Yang arrived to aid her friends, soaring in from the sky above she came screaming towards the ground, fist first, "I'M BAAACK!" she yelled as she slammed into a small group of Grimm, her gauntlets causing a small crater that easily tore the creatures apart.

"Yang!" Ruby exclaimed in a joyous tone.

"About time." Chastised Weiss, but even so a small smile tugged at her lips, happy to see that her friend was alive and well.

"I'm glad you could make it." Blake added, landing next to her partner as they stood back to back.

"Oh, I wouldn't miss this party for the world." The two huntresses kicked off, lashing at the Grimm nearby. The monsters were called Octaurs, large eight legged monsters with beady eyes. Each leg came with a nasty set of claws, all black and covered in small thin hair. They were at waist height on Yang, as she slammed a fist into one of their sunken heads, shattering it and killing the creature. "And I brought help as well." She yelled over the sounds of battle. Weiss cast multiple glyphs in the air that summoned oversized icicles that speared multiple monsters. Ruby swung Crescent Rose in a wide arc severing multiple Grimm before slamming the scythe into the ground and discharging a few rounds.

"Help?" Blake asked confused as she landed from an Ariel attack, whipping Gambol Shroud back into her hand and emptying the pistol point blank into a charging Grimm's head.

"Yeah, Alex is lending a hand from afar; expect a few arrows to pick off a Grimm or two." As she spoke, almost making no sound except a split second whistle, an arrow struck the ground several metres away; the explosion shredded the nearby Grimm and caused Yang to leap away as debris and earth were flung into the air. "What the…?" she stared shocked at the small crater, "An arrow did that?"

"Do you not understand how kinetic potential works?!" Weiss yelled over the sounds of battle.

"What?!" Yang yelled back.

"Urgh, I'll explain it later when we're not about to be overrun!"

Yang fired her gauntlets into the ground sending her skyward and smashing back down into a dozen Grimm, the blast killing them all, as she quickly stood up an arrow cut past her vision mere inches from her face, the air pressure from the arrow buffeted her body and whipped her hair, it struck the ground meters away, shredding a few Grimm.

"Did you see how close that was?!" She called out excitedly.

"I thought for sure he accidently hit you then." Blake responded, her voice tinged with worry.

"No way, firing from his range? He knows what he's doing!"

* * *

Meanwhile on the Cliffside, "I've killed Yang!" Alex screamed, sobbing into his hands as he collapsed onto his knees.

"_You didn't kill her!" _Arras tried to inform him.

"How was I supposed to know she was going to leap to that exact spot!" he sobbed, his words muffles by his hands.

"_Are you even listening to me, she's fine you moron!"_

"And the time delay, I couldn't have known. Yang, I'm so, so sorry!"

"_She. Is. Alive. You. Waste. Of. Space!"_

"Huh?" Alex quickly raised his head out of his hands, "I didn't hit her?" he asked confused, "But I was sure I saw-"

"_You were helluva close, but no you missed her by a fraction. No doubt she thinks you did it on purpose." _He interrupted, before he had to listen to anymore of Alex's blubbering.

"Oh, well in that case…" Alex stood back up and prepared another arrow, his despair completely erased in a second.

"_You have no intention of telling her it was a fluke that you missed her?"_

"Hell no! Best we let her think I'm a badass, than an idiot that almost skewered her." He quickly added, releasing another arrow, this time with a bit more caution.

"_Yeah I didn't think you would" _Arras added with a sigh.

* * *

As the four girls continued to fight for their lives, the arrows continued to strike in between the midst of battle, their detonations shredding Grimm. Weiss launched more ice crystals into her foes, after they skewered their target they shattered, sending razor sharps blades of ice in all directions cutting down many more. With every swing of her scythe, Ruby felled countless monsters. Yang took a more direct approach, punching every Grimm that came within reach, each blow killing its target. Blake lashed out with Gambol Shroud; she spun the ribbon around her, the katana slicing through limbs and bodies. Yet despite the girl's best efforts, more and more Grimm spewed forth. Even able to cut down countless monsters, their numbers were innumerable.

"This is getting bad!" Blake yelled as she severed several Grimm with her katana.

"We need a strategy!" Informed the heiress, she hissed under her breath, "My dust is running low!"

"Fall back, we can't face these numbers!" Called out the young leader as she dispatched several charging Grimm with a single swing of her scythe, yet even then many more crawled over their fallen corpses towards the young girl.

"Alex, we're retreating!" Yang quickly informed him.

"Don't!" he quickly replied, "I have a plan, trust me!"

"This is his plan!" complained Weiss, as the four girls now found themselves all back to back, completely surrounded on all sides by charging Grimm. Yang's shotgun rounds, Blake's pistol bullets, Ruby's sniper rounds and Weiss's dust projectiles, fired in all directions, the kill count was astronomical, yet there seemed no end to the black tide. "This is foolish, we're going to die here!" she further protested, panic began to clutch the young girl's heart as she watched her dust dwindle.

"I have to agree with Weiss on this, I'm not sure we can hold out for long!" Added Blake, the clicking sound of an empty mag sent panic through her body as she quickly tried to reload.

"I'm almost empty!" Yang informed them, her left gauntlet had run dry and she had no time to reload; now only firing with her right. "Alex, whatever you're gonna do, do it now! Please!"

"Get down!" yelled the young man, through the earpiece.

"Everyone, get down!" repeated Yang to the group, with almost no hesitation the four girls hit the ground.

* * *

**Break Three**

* * *

Moments before, on the edge of a cliff Alex quickly made his preparations. Spinning his staff he plunged one end into the ground, he quickly detached his two quivers and set them on the ground, before picking and choosing the appropriate arrows. Nearly two dozen normal arrows, half a dozen explosive, two ice dust and one flame dust, as well as other miscellaneous arrows. He began to pluck an arrow in-between each of his fingers, four in each hand, and eight in total. Standing up he placed each set either side of his staff, eight small glyphs pulsed into life as Alex began to draw them back. Using all his body weight he forcefully dragged them further back, all eight acceleration glyphs burned brighter and brighter.

"If this doesn't work, I'm going to need you to get me down there as quickly as possible, and then give me back the body." He informed his other half.

"_I assume you have a plan B?"_

"Of sorts." He vaguely replied, with his arrows drawn and his target set, he nudged his right ear into his shoulder, activating his earpiece. "Get down!" he yelled out before releasing his arrows one at a time in a set order.

* * *

As the girls cowered down with fast approaching Grimm on all sides, the first of the arrows struck dangerously close by. First were four normal arrows that struck around the girls, their small detonations killing the closest Grimm and forcing the others on the back foot. Next struck two high explosive arrows, the resulting explosion was deafening, like the sound of thunder right next to their heads. The explosion shattered the ground and annihilated the Grimm; trees were blown apart or outright disintegrated. Ruby began to scream as the explosions deafened her, Yang instinctively clutched the young girls head to her chest in a desperate attempt to cover her ears. More arrows struck at a high rate of fire as Alex continued to launch them in volleys of eight at a time. Two ice arrows struck either side of the girls forming two massive ice walls that encased most monsters in a frozen tomb whilst blocking the others out. More arrows stuck the make shift walls completely shattering them sending razor ice in all directions, severing countless Grimm. A flame arrow struck, igniting in a straight line consuming the monsters in a hungry blaze that devoured their bodies.

As the explosions and fire died down, each of the girls slowly rose to their feet. "Holy Dust…" muttered Weiss as she stared at the devastation he had caused, all around them lay nothing but carnage and destruction. No tree within a hundred metres of them was left standing; Grimm bodies lay strewn in all direction, some beginning to disintegrate already.

"Err, guys!" called out Yang, pointing into the distance, more Grimm were approaching fast.

"There's more approaching from the hill!" Blake quickly informed them.

"Alex, whatever you did was only a stall, there's more on their way!" Yang hurriedly yelled to him, the closest of the Grimm, only several hundred metres away.

"Looks like it's time for plan B then." He replied. With a sound like a gunshot, Arras was stood behind them, in a blink his red eyes turned to silver.

"Alex?" Weiss asked confused as the hunter strolled passed them towards the charging Grimm, as they descended from the hilltop.

"I'm guessing Yang hasn't had time to tell you, but I recently learned something about my Semblance." He informed them as he stared at his left palm, a green flame forming against his skin.

Yang stared in awe at it, "That's right!" The other girls all stared confused between Yang and Alex.

"Are you planning on letting us in on this little secret of yours?" asked Weiss impatiently.

"I think…it's best if I show you." Spoke the young man in an ominous tone.

"_Alex, you're fire is going to need to cover this entire area just to kill the Grimm, and even then, that's just the one's on the outside, there could be thousands more within those tunnels!"_

"One step at a time Arras" there was silence, followed by Arras sighing.

"_In that case, we're going to have to trigger an Aura spike to give you enough juice to cover the whole area."_

"I know." Added Alex softly.

"_This could kill us!"_

"I know." He repeated. Arras sighed again.

"_You know you're going awfully far to help these girls complete their mission, which is funny because we're not even supposed to be here and now we're risking our very lives for them." _

"Would you prefer we ran and left them to their fate?"

Arras was quiet for a few moments, his thoughts turned to that of the raven haired girl. _"Do whatever you want; I doubt I could convince you otherwise. Besides, dying to save four hot babes is a pretty good way to go if you ask me."_

Alex smiled broadly, "I'm glad you see things my way."

"_Alright then, let's show these chicks just how much of a boss we really are, and if we survive this, let's cross our fingers that they reward us appropriately, you know, like all four at the same time."_

Alex gave a small chuckle, sighed and turned his head to face the girls, "I'm going to trigger an Aura spike." He calmly informed them. Their eyes widened in horror.

"Are you a moron?! You're going to get yourself killed!" screamed Weiss, immediately understanding the gravity of the situation.

"Alex, don't do this, I won't allow it." Blake reacted differently, calmly taking a step towards him.

"Sorry Blake, but we're out of options." He countered. Yang could only stare at the young man, her eyes glossed over with wetness.

"What's an Aura spike?" Ruby asked confused.

"It's when you push your Aura too far without releasing it; eventually it becomes self-sustaining, feeding upon itself and growing ever more intense. It allows a hunter to push their abilities beyond their limit, however…" Weiss's explanation faltered as she failed to find the right words.

"However…" Blake continued, "…the Aura begins to consume the body, starting with nerves and muscles, within minutes it destroys vital organs eventually leading to death." Ruby stared in horror as the explanation sunk in.

"No…you can't, I won't allow you to die!" she screamed, tears welling up in her eyes.

"That's not going to happen." Alex calmly stated, "You can control an Aura spike if you can release enough Aura in a short space of time." The sounds of footfalls from the fast approaching Grimm could now be heard. "Give me thirty seconds, forty-five, tops. If it looks like I can't control it then knock me unconscious." Alex looked to Yang who stared at him with pure sadness, her expression twisted Alex's stomach, but he didn't let it show. "I'll leave that to you Yang, a good blow to the head from you ought to do it right? After all, you've knocked me out once before." He added with a smile. A single tear escaped her eyes, running down her cheek, swallowing her sadness and ignoring the heavy lump in her stomach she wiped her eyes.

"You got it Alex, just leave it to me." She added in a hopeful voice and giving him a confident nod.

"Alright, then let's get too it Arras!"

Alex stood before the approaching black tide as the four girls of RWBY stood behind him. He began to summon his entire Aura, the familiar sensation of power built up within him until his muscles began to hurt. Quickly releasing control Arras took over and began a similar process. Still recovering from the effects of Alex's build up, the body was now pushed further by a build-up of Aura from Arras. Multiple times they did this, each time they pushed their Aura beyond its limit. Every now and then a grunt of pain would escape their lips as the Aura burnt up their insides. The girls could only watch in trepidation as the Grimm grew closer.

"Alex…" Yang spoke impatiently as the Grimm were almost on top of them. In a burst of white light Alex's body was consumed, the girls shielded their eyes until it died away leaving Alex in a white glow.

"He did it." Muttered Weiss.

Alex's whole body tensed, biting back the agony he glared at the oncoming monsters, "Emerald…!" he shouted, his whole body bursting into vibrant green flames.

"What is he doing?!" yelled Blake as she stared at the young man, bewildered.

"Just watch!" replied Yang, ignoring her fear and anxiety of how this could turn out, she felt more than a little curious of how well his plan would work.

"…Phoenix!" The young hunter threw his arms outwards, green fire burst from him in all directions like a tidal wave. The green fire washed over the girls first, it hit with such force that they were almost knocked back, but each of them held fast as the emerald wave crashed passed them. It consumed the ground erasing the damage from his arrows as vibrant plant life began to grow, it consumed the trees, repairing their damaged trunks and burnt leaves. The fire raged all around as it crossed the forest like a stampede. As the girls stood amongst a sea of fire they could only watch in awe as it raced up the hill towards the charging Grimm. Unthreatened by the fire they raced forth until Grimm and fire connected, instantaneously the Grimm were reduced to ash, the fire not halting nor slowing in its advance as it continued through the legion of monsters, consuming and devouring, it removed the black tide leaving a lush and beautiful landscape in its wake. The very sight had the girls staring in awe at such carnage and beauty. Watching the death of Grimm only to have where they stood replaced with gorgeous and vibrant plant life, it was as if watching humanities dream right before their eyes.

"Thirty seconds!" Weiss called out, suddenly remembering how this remarkable feat was possible.

"Got it!" replied Yang rushing towards the epicentre of the green blaze.

"No!" came an agonized scream, "I can hold it!" the young man's voice was racked with pain, yet Yang halted in her tracks, looking back over to her friends each of them showed their concern. The sea of fire had consumed the entire hillside and beyond. Looking behind her she could see the Cliffside where Alex had stood not ten minutes ago, consumed in an emerald blaze.

"Forty-five seconds!" Weiss screamed her anxiety all but clear.

"Alex, you've done it, now stop!" screamed the golden haired huntress.

"I…I can hold it…" despite his words, the flames showed no signs of stopping.

"Yang, do it now, no matter what he says, his life depends on it!" Ruby yelled out, following an order from her team lead Yang closed on the young man, throwing her left foot forward she drew back her right fist and aimed for the back of the hunter's head.

"I'm sorry…" she muttered and threw her fist forward. The green fire came to an abrupt halt as did Yang's fist. Everyone watched in shock as the flames all around them died out almost as quickly as they spewed forth. As they did they could finally see the effects of his Semblance. No sign of Grimm was anywhere to be found, and the forest looked as gorgeous as ever. Lush green trees, all around them, gorgeous plants and flowers growing in all directions. The golden rays of the sun filtering through the treetops, illuminating the beauty of their surroundings.

"I can't believe it, he actually did it." Blake spoke softly, sounding unsure of herself. The girls looked to one another, before their eyes settled on the back of the young man before them. They jumped a little when his arms shot straight into the air.

"Who did it? I did it!" he bellowed, "And who doubted me?" he asked as he spun to face the girls, a pure and genuine smile across his face. He lowered his arms and pointed towards the team. "You doubted me!" The girls all looked shocked for a moment.

"Well…what do you expect, you could have died!" reprimanded Weiss.

"We were only concerned for your safety." Added Blake.

"We thought for sure you had lost it." Spoke Yang, voicing her concern.

"Well the good news is he didn't, way to go Green!" cheered Ruby.

Alex began to laugh, "Thank you very much, now, who wants to carry me…" and with that Alex slammed face first into the ground, slowly sliding down the hill. Weiss let out a yelp of surprise as Yang rushed to the man's side.

"Alex, are you OK?"

"I can't feel my legs" the young man replied, as he spoke into the ground. The four girls surrounded him.

"I hope that's only temporary, we still have a sizeable hill to climb." Blake pointed out.

"Well it serves him right, how reckless can he be?!" Weiss chided.

"You gotta admit though, he did good." Ruby added with a shrug.

"Easy does it." Yang spoke as she hoisted the exhausted hunter off the ground and threw him over her shoulder. "We still got a while before we reach the cave, I suggest you rest up." With the immediate Grimm destroyed the girls enjoyed a relatively leisure trip up the hill.

* * *

**Break Four**

* * *

As they walked Yang informed the team of what happened to her the moment she touched down, from her initial fight to the unique creatures, to Alex's intervention, and to how she spent her first night.

"Well at least you had a fire to keep you warm!" Spat Weiss.

"Why, how did you guys keep warm?" she asked. Ruby, Weiss and Blake looked between one another.

"We'd rather not talk about it." Answered Ruby, as the three girls avoided further eye contact.

"Never mind that, tell us more about these Grimm?" Insisted Blake, as she quickly changed the subject.

"That's the thing," Yang began to answer, "Alex said they're not actual Grimm, or at least not proper Grimm anyways." Her explanation raised a few eyebrows. "If Alex was conscious he could tell you."

"Hey, I said my legs don't work, not my mouth!" Yelled the dangling hunter.

"Oh, so you are awake, then how about you tell us what you meant by them not being proper Grimm." Yang asked, as she shook the hunter, causing him to wobble on her shoulder.

"What I mean is that they seem too perfect to be Grimm. Those sleek bodies, unnatural abilities and unheard of intelligence. These aren't creatures born from the wild, they're made by man." Alex's blunt admission caused the girls to halt.

"Made by man?" Blake repeated, unsure of what she heard. Alex struggled against Yang's grip, hopping off her shoulder.

"Hey, I thought you said you couldn't walk?" The blonde huntress pointed out.

"Oh, I felt my legs five seconds after you picked me up." The hunter admitted.

"Then why didn't you say anything?" she demanded.

"Well I enjoyed the lift, plus the view was nice."

Yang blinked for a moment, before realising that with Alex over her shoulder, his only view was of her rear. She was about to give Alex a verbal lashing, but eventually sighed and decided to let this one pass.

"What I mean is, I believe that someone or at least a group of people are creating creatures very similar to Grimm, but with a few more nasty tricks up their sleeves." He explained.

"Impossible." Refuted Weiss with an air of confidence, "Such a thing can't be done, can it?" she asked losing confidence in herself.

"It's possible; I've seen it with my own eyes." The young man countered.

"Okay, if what you are saying is true, then where is your proof?" To Weiss's question Alex could only smile.

"Now that's a good question, the proof isn't something I have, but something Ashton is in possession of." He explained.

"Ashton, your team-mate?" asked Ruby.

"The very same, you see…" Alex was cut off by a beam of sunlight hitting his eyes. "Crap, we're wasting time. The mission comes first; I'll explain everything once we're back on the airship." Simultaneously realising the time, the five hunters began to double time it up the hill towards the caves entrance.

* * *

Moments later they arrived at level ground, the hill stretched high above them but on the other side of the plateau was a gaping mouth of a cave that led inside the hill. The five hunters crossed the flatland towards the cave entrance, immediately the girls covered their noses.

"Argh, what is that stench?" Asked Ruby in a nasal voice as she pinched her nose shut.

"No doubt about it, this is the entrance to the lair." Informed the heiress, in a similar nasally voice.

"This place reeks!" pointed out Yang.

"It also reeks heavily of blood." Blake added ominously.

"Right," spoke Alex as he took a step forward, unhindered by the smell, "We're burning sunshine and we still have another task to complete, so close the entrance and do it quickly." Ordered the hunter, to his command the four huntresses looked bemused between one another. The entrance was least three metres tall and similar in width, and while the outside of the hill was lush with grass and soil the inside was solid rock.

"Don't look at me, my sniper rounds won't do anything." Ruby admitted.

"Neither will my weapon." Blake added.

"I could use my gauntlet blast to cause a landside to seal it?" Yang half informed, half asked.

"Soil would be useless; the Grimm would dig through it in minutes." Alex pointed out, shutting down the girl's plan.

"I could seal the entrance in ice?" Weiss tried to add helpfully.

"And Ice would melt in minutes and the Grimm would flood out." Alex pointed out in exasperation, "Are you telling me that none of you can perform demolitions?"

"Well perhaps, given time." Weiss sneered, growing impatient with the man's attitude.

"And time is precisely something you don't have! Fine, I'll do it myself, step back." Commanded Alex as he drew his blades, formed a bow and went to retrieve an arrow.

"What do you think you are doing?" demanded the heiress, "This is our mission to complete, and we should be the ones to seal it!"

"Weiss is right; this is something we need to do for ourselves." Ruby added with a smile. Sensing he couldn't win, Alex held his bladed staff over his shoulder.

"Fine, take a crack at it, you got five minutes." He explained taking several steps back. The four girls stepped forward before sharing a confident look between one another. "Oh and another thing, I should point out that you better get it right first time, cause if you don't, you'll only alert the Grimm to our presence and they will come flooding out of that cave, and you won't have my Aura spike to save you this time." He added knowingly. The girls now shared a sceptical look between one another, before taking several steps back.

"On second thoughts, maybe you should do it Green." The young leader insisted.

"Are you sure, this is your mission after all, I'd hate to impose." He added mockingly.

"I'm not happy about it but it's not worth risking our lives over, just hurry up and get it done." Weiss demanded.

"So kind of you." Alex bowed to the heiress before taking a step forward and readying an arrow.

"Hey, I recognise that arrow." Yang pointed out, seeing Alex draw the oversized projectile.

"This?" Alex asked nodding to the arrow, "Zinear made this for me, he called it the Saturn Buster." He informed them, as he took aim down the shaft.

"Saturn Buster, you don't mean Saturn as in the Atlas warship, do you?" Asked Ruby excitedly, when it came to technological feats, Atlas's warships were high up on Ruby's interests.

"The exact same, this arrow is packed with explosives. Of course, I highly doubt Zinear designed it to actually bring down a Saturn warship, most likely he was just over exaggerating its power, but it should be enough to reduce the cave shaft with any luck." With his explanation done, he drew the arrow back, his arm held the bow straight as he took aim. Releasing the arrow it burst forward at incredible speed vanishing into the darkness. As the seconds ticked by everyone waited on edge for the sound of the detonation, but sadly, it never came. "Huh, maybe it was a dud." Alex whispered, looking dejectedly at the cave.

"Wait a second, you said, the arrow should be enough to close the cave, you don't actually know if it can?" questioned Weiss.

"Actually no, I've never actually tested it before." Admitted the hunter, Weiss could only stare at him in anger.

"And you said Zinear made this arrow for you? You told me he was a mercenary right, isn't explosives a big deal to him?" asked Yang.

"Oh definitely, Zin is in charge of all our explosives, every one of my explosive arrows are made by him." He answered.

"And does he exaggerate a lot about their explosive potential?" she asked, with a hint of fear at his answer.

"Actually no, when it comes to explosives, Zin is deadly serious, in fact it might be the only thing he's serious about." He informed them with a chuckle.

Yang took a step forward, her face all but serious, "So when he named your arrow the Saturn buster, the Saturn being an Atlas warship that's half a kilometre long…" Yang left the question open, as she hinted to the bigger picture. Alex stared at her confused for a moment, before it suddenly struck him.

'Zin wasn't joking' he thought, as fear gripped his heart, he sighed in relief, "Yes, but thankfully the arrow was a dud remember?"

Almost like a jinx, the ground shook violently; a deafening roar erupted from the hill side, the hunters tried to keep their balance. With a horrendous explosion the top of the hill blew off, throwing earth and rock hundreds of metres into the air. From the cave shaft a large column of fire came spewing up. The hunters stared at it in shock, the hill began to collapse in on itself, and soon the ground beneath their feet began to give way.

"RUN!" bellowed Alex, not needing telling twice the five of them bolted in the opposite direction as fast as their legs would carry them. Reaching the edge of the plateau they each leapt through the air hitting the hillside running. The ground was collapsing beneath their very feet.

"Don't look back, keep running no matter what!" he yelled over the deafening sound of the hill splitting apart. A large piece of rock slammed in front of Blake who expertly leapt over it, before another almost crushed Ruby, however with a single slash of her scythe she cut the boulder in half.

"Great, not only are we running for our lives, but now we have to worry about being crushed!" complained Weiss as she cast a glyph above her, which blocked a falling boulder, preventing it from crushing her. A piece of rock slammed in front of Yang who merely punched her way through it, without losing any momentum.

With a final thunderous roar, the massive hill erupted apart; the sound was unlike anything Alex had ever heard. The very earth sounded like it would split apart and yet despite covering a lot of distance it was all in vain. The ground beneath their running feet erupted outwards and the last thing Alex heard was the girls scream before his world turned to dark.

* * *

"Alex"

…

"Alex, wake up!" called a panicked voice. His consciousness slowly returned and his view was of a yellow haired huntress leaning over him, with a beautiful cerulean blue sky behind her.

"I must have died and gone to heaven, and you must be an angel?" he spoke in a groggy voice.

"You're still alive on Remnant, and I'm about to punch you." She jokingly threatened, sitting the hunter up. Quickly gaining his bearings Alex found his outfit covered in dust and mud. His immediate surroundings looked like a natural disaster. Rock and destroyed trees lay everywhere as the other girls of team RWBY dusted themselves off.

"Oh when I see that Zinear guy I'm giving him a piece of my mind!" screamed Weiss as she desperately tried to get the dirt out of her pure white hair. Alex pushed himself to his feet, his eyes widened in horror and his mouth hung agape. The entire hillside was gone; a large crater nearly two kilometres in diameter was all that was left.

"What the fuck, Zin, I mean what the actual fuck?" he quietly muttered to himself. Sighing heavily he closed his eyes, "Well at least that Grimm nest is gone." He shuddered at the thought of Octaurs, their eight legged bodies creeped Alex out. As he spoke however a large, thin, black leg of an Octaur slowly creeped over his shoulder, spotting it, his heart burst into his throat, letting out a high pitched scream of terror, he immediately flung himself backwards, tripping over rubble and slamming onto his rear, hard. Ruby, who was clutching the severed leg burst into hysterics, as did the other girls. He looked at them in horror, then confusion, and finally anger.

"What was that scream?" Blake mocked as she laughed into her hand.

"He sounded almost as bad as Jaune!" Yang bellowed, whilst clutching her sides in laughter. Even the Icy heiress was trying to stifle her laughter with her hands.

"I'm sorry Green!" Ruby tried to apologise in between fits of laughter,, "I couldn't resist." Alex pulled himself to his feet and dusted himself off.

"Yeah, go on laugh it up, but just you wait, if my team ever comes here, we'll show you the true meaning of a prank. Consider this a Declaration of War!" With those final words, Alex stormed off in a huff. Blake made her way over to Yang's side.

"I do hope one day we can meet his team, he must be kinda lonely without them." Blake spoke, looking to Yang.

"I hope so too, he goes on about them enough." She added as they watched the lone hunter make his way to their final objective.

* * *

**Break Five**

* * *

Reaching the Blue diamond lake took longer than expected, having to navigate around the crater and through the rubble and debris. But after what felt like hours and leaving the carnage behind they eventually arrived at their destination.

"Wow." Ruby muttered as they reached the lakes edge, she stared across the beautiful blue water. The calm and tranquil lake dominated their vision as it expanded before them seemingly endless, its crisp blue water reflecting the midday sun. All along its edges were the dense forest they had gotten used to.

"The water here is so calm; it looks like one giant mirror!" Weiss admired it in awe; looking over the water's edge she could see her own clear reflection.

"How big is this lake?" Blake asked curiously.

"I'd say one hundred and sixteen kilometres in length, give or take." He answered with a knowing smile. Yang let out a low whistle.

"We might need a boat then to reach the relic." She half joked.

"Maybe not," Added Ruby as she pointed across the water, "There's something there in the distance." The girls tried to squint to get a better idea of what it was. Yang however looked to Alex.

"So go on then, tell us what it is." She spoke, already knowing of Alex's archer eyesight.

"It's a pedestal…with a chess piece on it?" he asked, confused.

"Then that's definitely the relic then, Ozpin has used chess pieces in the past." Explained Weiss, as she moved to the water's edge, "The real question is how we get there without drowning?"

Ruby moved over to the water's edge. "Weiss, could you freeze the lake so I can cross it?" she asked her partner. Weiss looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Not the whole lake per se, but definitely a sizable amount for you to reach the relic." She confirmed.

"Do it." The young leader commanded. With Myrtenaster in hand, Weiss plunged its tip into the water's surface, breaking its tranquil look as a ripple disturbed the surface. Following the ripple came ice; it spread across the surface, turning the deep blue mirror like water into a white sheet of frozen surface. It covered a sizable area spreading further till it passed the pedestal and consumed further across the water's surface.

"There," gasped Weiss as she steadied her legs, the feat taking much of her energy as well as her Aura, "That should be enough." Ruby gently placed her foot on the surface, and felt her foot lose traction.

"Now we just need to get across there without slipping." Ruby thought aloud.

"Here," spoke the heiress, tapping Myrtenaster against Ruby's boot, a thin shard of ice formed along her boot like an improvised ice skate. Repeating the process to her other shoe Ruby mounted the surface, gliding effortlessly across its surface.

"Ha-ha, this is amazing!" Exclaimed the young girl, as she zipped across the frozen surface, leaping and spinning through the air, like a professional ice skater.

"Careful Ruby!" Yelled Yang like an over protective mother.

"She seems to be enjoying herself though." Blake added, as everyone watched the young leader make her way to the relic, laughing with joy. Alex smiled, watching her contently, her laughter bringing an infectious joy. The image was more than moving, a lone figure skating across the frozen water, a lush green forest hugging the water's edge, as a burning sun, surrounded by a pure blue sky, shone its golden rays down.

"_Grimm!" _Arras yelled in a panic, shattering the moment.

"Are you sure?" he asked his partner.

"_I can sense its presence!"_

"Where?!" Alex demanded, as he drew his blades, his head scanning in all directions.

"What's wrong Alex?" Yang asked, sensing his unease she readied her weapon as did the other two.

"_Below the water's edge, below Ruby!" _he exclaimed. Looking at the frozen surface, he could see it. His eyes widened in horror, a black mass moved below the ice, its size was enormous. He watched as the mass moved beneath Ruby and then…

"Ruby!" he yelled with all his might. The ice shattered as the monstrous creature rose from the surface, the last they saw of the young leader, was her panicked face as she vanished behind the black mass.

"Ruby!" cried Weiss as she ran for the water's edge. She felt herself get dragged back, as the powerful Yang grabbed a hold of her.

"Don't be an idiot Weiss, you'll get yourself killed!"

The monstrous Grimm was several stories tall with a dozen massive tentacles the size of buildings, it let out a deafening roar as its arms smashed the forest around it, one arm coming dangerously close to crushing the entire team. It flattened trees effortlessly and shook the ground with each strike.

"A Prime, it's a Prime Grimm!" muttered Alex in shock, not quite believing his very eyes.

"A Prime Grimm?" Blake asked, as she too found herself not believing the sight before her.

"A Prime Grimm is the title we give to monsters that have lived for thousands of years, they can grow to incredible sizes, they are unbelievably powerful, and few have killed one. I can't believe one is here!"

"Let go of me!" Weiss screamed desperately struggling against Yang's grip. "She's in trouble, we have to help her, let go of me now!" With a powerful grip Yang spun Weiss to face her, the heiress's protests stopped once she spotted the wetness in Yang's eyes.

"You think I don't know that! My baby sister is in trouble, there's nothing I want more than to rush off and save her. But dying here won't help anyone, that's not your usual Grimm, we need to be smart, you of all people should know that!"

Weiss looked at the gargantuan monster as it flailed its massive arms destroying entire swathes of forest with one powerful swing. "We have to do something fast, every second we waste…" her voice trailed off, sensing Yang's grip become lax, Weiss pulled free, making another break for the monster. This time however Blake blocked her path as Yang grabbed her from behind.

"Stop this Weiss, this rash behaviour isn't like you. We all want to save Ruby but rash actions will get us nowhere." Blake pleaded as she struggled against the slim build of Weiss. Weiss looked at her with tears in her eyes.

"If she's dead, I…I…let me go, I need to save her!" she screamed, shaking her head. Her panicked state fuelled by her love for Ruby drove her insane, yet she knew her struggle was pointless, between Yang and Blake she couldn't get free, yet every second they restrained her made her more desperate. She locked eyes with the green clad hunter, as he watched their turmoil from the outside. "Alex please, don't let her die, save her!" she bellowed.

"Don't be ridiculous, going alone is suicide, Alex understands that." Yang explained as she firmly held Weiss.

"Save her Alex, I order you, save Ruby!" she screamed.

"Order?" Yang asked confused, "Just because you're some rich guys daughter doesn't mean you can order people around, he won't listen to you, Alex isn't…Alex?" Yang's rant was cut short by the actions of the young man. He moved to the water's edge, with blades in hand. "You can't be serious, Alex you don't need to listen to her!"

"I do Yang," spoke the hunter, "Besides, even if a Schnee didn't order me, I'd do it anyway, I refuse to let a friend die, not when I have the power to save them. Arras, let's go!" With those parting words, Alex vanished without a trace. Blake and Yang stared in shock where the hunter once stood, feeling overcome with rage Yang gripped Weiss' shoulder.

"What does he mean ordered by a Schnee?" she demanded, shaking the white haired girl.

"He's Foresight; their backed by the SDC, part of the deal is that all Foresight hunters must obey Schnee family members, he can't refuse me!" she spat back her explanation. "You should be thanking me, he's about to save your sister!" Yang could only stare at her in shock; she released the young girl, taking a step back.

"Save? You ordered him to save Ruby, knowing he could die in the process." She muttered in shock, "You Bit-"

"Yang!" Blake yelled over the sounds of the rampaging monster, "Alex said that even if she didn't he would have done it regardless, this is Alex's choice, it's not her fault." She calmly explained. Yang let out a sigh, calming her fraying nerves.

In that moment there was a familiar sounding of popping air pressure, the girls turned to face Alex, who cradled an unconscious Ruby in his arms. Her eyes slowly flickered open.

"Hey guys, she muttered, what happened?" she looked at the shocked faces of her team-mates before becoming aware of her position, she looked to the floor and noticed she was being cradled, turning the other way she saw Alex, looking down at her, his face inches from hers, his arms wrapped around her body. "Eh?" she quickly squirmed and Alex released her, quickly gaining her balance she took a step back from him. "W-why was I in your arms?" she stammered out, her cheeks flushing slightly.

"We thought we had lost you to that Grimm, Alex and Arras saved you." Blake explained, Ruby looked to Weiss to see her fighting back tears, as she slowly approached her leader she wrapped her arms around her and sobbed quietly into her shoulder.

"I…I thought that you…"

"Hey, it's okay, I'm fine." Reassured the red haired girl as she gently patted her partners back.

"Weiss is crying." Yang pointed out.

"And hugging." Blake added. "What's with that?"

"Enough with the reunion, Red, do you have the relic?" Alex interrogated the young leader. Weiss took a step back from her, wiping her face as Ruby reached into one of her many pockets, she removed a chess piece; it was the white knight.

"Kinda fitting don't you think?" The young leader asked, to the nods of the rest of the team. Alex chose to ignore their inside joke.

"Right, mission complete, let's get out of here." He ordered turning from the monstrous Grimm.

"What about that?" Ruby asked, staring at the Prime Grimm as it roared and smashed around.

"What about it, your mission was to retrieve the relic, nothing more, we've done that, let's go!" he countered, yet despite his words, no one moved.

"I say we eliminate it, we're hunters it's our duty." The rest of her team nodded in agreement.

Alex stared bewildered at the four girls, he couldn't believe what he was hearing, "Are you all insane? I just saved your life, now you're telling me you're going to throw it away. That is a Prime Grimm," he yelled, pointing at the monster behind them, "It was alive and killing long before your great grandfather was even born, and now you think a bunch of teenagers can just waltz up and kill it? Now I'm telling you, we're leaving, and that's that!"

"It's not your mission." Ruby calmly countered, Alex blinked for a moment in confusion, taking a step back. "This is _my_ mission, and this is _my _team, and we are going to destroy that monster." Turning away from Alex the girls grouped together. "Our main issue will be the arms, White Rose will focus on them, Bumblebee I want you to focus on the main head."

"My Ice should be useful at keeping the arms pinned." Weiss added.

"I'll focus on its eyes then, I can move quick enough between its defences." Blake spoke, readying Gambol Shroud.

Yang slammed her fists together, "Then just leave the killing blow to me, I'll smash its head in." She exclaimed.

"Then let's kills this monster and finish our mission as a team." The young leader added, before the four of them ran at the monster. Alex could only stare in shock.

Weiss launched herself into the air, before landing on a glyph that overlooked the monster. From her high vantage point she could easily make out the entire creature, its scope and size was daunting, yet she steadied her nerves and put her trust in her team-mates. With a wave of Myrtenaster several glyphs appeared above her head, forming large sword like crystals that took aim at the many arms, with a flick of her wrist they let loose, skewering and pinning the enormous tentacles to the ground.

Sensing her cue, Ruby fired Crescent Rose behind her propelling herself towards one of the pinned appendages, she leapt from one of the creatures free arms and with her scythe extended lashed out at the skewered limb, her scythe cut through the arm though she had to fire another round to give her enough force. With one arm severed the creature let out a deafening howl, its remaining arms smashing the ground and trees into pieces.

Yang blasted her way through the small openings, sometimes landing on one of its limbs to leap to the next, making her way towards its oversized head she leapt high, firing her gauntlets behind her, she came screaming down onto its head, slamming it fist first, she could feel its skull shatter beneath her blow. Another roar from the creature let them know they were on the right track.

Blake moved nimbly between its thrashing limbs as she used Gambol Shroud as a rope swing to swing from arm to arm. One of the monsters limbs lashed at her from her left, however a large ice sword skewered it, pinning it to the ground. Quietly thanking Weiss, Blake lunged at one of the creatures two eyes, whipping her kitana back into her hand, she plunged her black blade into its soft shell for an eye, it burst on impact splashing the girl in disgusting red fluid, not letting it faze her, she buried the blade deeper. The monster screeched and howled, its limbs flailing and thrashing. Pulling her blade free, she leapt clear.

* * *

As team RWBY continued to maneuver between its limbs landing blow after blow on the monster, Alex couldn't help but be in awe of the team's power and co-ordination. Watching their assault from the lakes edge, he felt a pang of envy. Whenever team Azara ran into a Prime Grimm he always gave the order to retreat, he couldn't help but wonder. _Could my team kill a Prime Grimm? _The question nagged in his mind, Raz was as powerful as Yang, his unique Semblance gave him strength beyond measure, although there were limitations, he could easily handle himself in a fight like this. Ashton was fast, and his sword could cut through anything, it would easily make a mess of the creature's limbs, his Semblance would allow him to easily move through for an assault or to weigh down the monsters arms aiding his other team-mates. Zinear was agile and a perfect shot with his sniper rifle, with his heightened reflexes he could easily pick out the Grimm's eyes without having to move position. Then there was himself and Arras, he knew their strength, his explosive arrows could shatter the limbs or skewer its eyes, and Arras's speed would make it impossible for the creature to hit them.

All in all it wouldn't be too hard for his own team to perform such a feat, with co-ordination, skill and a bit of luck they could do it too. _So why, why do I always run whenever we encounter one? _Alex wasn't afraid of death he knew that much. A Prime Grimm is usually clever and devious, having thousands of years of combat experience makes them terrifying foes.

"It's not my death I'm afraid of, it's the deaths of my friends." He quietly muttered to himself, "I guess I still haven't gotten over the deaths of Blackwall and Krippler, I'm afraid to lose my friends again so I retreat to protect them, but…" As the young hunter watched the four girls use skill and team-work to fight off this monstrous Grimm he had a sudden realization. "I was wrong, I've been wrong this whole time. If I want to protect my friends, then I need to push them harder, the stronger they are, the better chance they have at survival. I should be trusting in their abilities to come through any fight alive. Instead, I coddled them like some over protective parent." Clenching his fist in anger he slammed it against his forehead, "No more, it's time to change, they taught me that. I shouldn't run, I shouldn't let fear compromise who I am. I'm going to fight, my team will fight, no matter the monster, no matter the odds, we will fight, and I know we will win!"

* * *

As team RWBY continued their assault, the Grimm became more erratic in its attack, so focused on keeping her friends safe from the creatures limbs, Weiss didn't notice one of the arms come up below her.

"Weiss, beneath you!" Ruby screamed in horror. Weiss watched in terror as the arm smashed her from below, however she felt herself get dragged away at the last minute.

"Arras?" she asked confused as the hunter shot high into the air, the young girl in is arms. The rest of the team breathed a sigh of relief.

"You should really pay attention to your surroundings." He criticized.

"What's it to you? I thought you and Alex chose not to fight?" she countered in her usual icy tone.

"We had a bit of an epiphany watching you guys fight, we've changed our minds." He explained, as Weiss cast another glyph which Arras landed on perfectly, setting the girl on her feet he gave Alex back the body. He looked over the glyphs edge, still high above the creature he could see the remaining members keep up their attack.

"Hey Yang," he bellowed out, "What the hell are you doing, hurry up and kill this thing like I know you can!"

Sliding down one of the tentacles Yang leapt to the lakes edge. "It's a little harder than that, the Grimm's head is made of sturdy stuff, my attacks can't get through!" she yelled back.

Alex scanned the monster, "Blunt force attacks won't get through." He muttered to himself.

"_If we manage to open a hole up in its thick skin the heavyweight should be able to take care of the rest." _Arras added helpfully.

"Weiss, I want you to hit one point on that creatures head with every iced blade you can muster."

"Got it!" she nodded in affirmation.

Giving Arras control of the body he used his Semblance to launch himself high into the air, at nearly a mile high, he gave Alex control again. With his enhanced sight he watched as Weiss summoned over a dozen iced swords, every one skewered one point on the monsters head. Forming his bow he launched his remaining explosive arrows with pin point accuracy. From the ground the girls watched, as the arrows struck the iced blades, the explosion cracked the air with a deafening clap. The monster bellowed as a sizable chunk of its head was obliterated. A soft disgusting mass of black goo could now be seen writhing beneath its hardened skin.

"There's my opening!" Yang exclaimed.

"Bumblebee!" Yelled out the young leader. Blake swung herself high into the air before throwing Gambol Shroud at Yang on the ground, who caught it effortlessly. With all her might, and the help of one of Weiss's jump glyphs, the Faunus girl launched her partner high up into the sky. The golden haired huntress soared passed her team-mates, towards the descending Alex who outstretched his arm, Yang reached out and clasped his hand.

"Finish this!" he yelled before switching to Arras, who, with his Semblance, launched Yang towards the heavens before warping himself to the lakes edge. Joined by the three remaining members they watched the Prime Grimm continue to smash and flail in agony.

A pounding boom echoed from the sky as they watched their friend screech back towards the Grimm. Roaring the entire way down Yang hit the monster at an incredible speed. Her whole body vanished inside the monster, perfectly hitting the hole in its defences. For a split second nothing seemed to happen until all the kinetic build up in Yang detonated within the monster. Cutting its roar abruptly short the entire monster popped like and over filled water balloon. It's remains scattered in every direction, blood and guts soared high into the air. Watching the moment a Prime Grimm was bested by a group of second year students, Alex calmly made his way over to the shade of one of the few remaining trees in the immediate area.

"Alex, what are you doing?" Blake asked, curious to his movements. His only reply was a point to the sky, looking up the three girls had no time to react as swathes of black blood fell on top of them.

"Ahhh!" The girls screamed simultaneously before bolting for the shade Alex hid under.

"You moron, why didn't you warn us too!" Weiss screamed as she wiped the disgusting black goo from her face, the stench was nauseating.

"Look, if you weren't smart enough to see _that_ coming then you don't deserve to dodge it." Was his only reply. The girls were still wiping the goo from their clothes when Yang pulled herself out from the lakes waters. With the rain of gore over, Alex made his way over to the drenched girl. "You're looking very clean." He quipped, "A lot cleaner than your friends." He added, gesturing to her team-mates.

Yang blinked in confusion, "What happened to them?" she asked shaking her body like a wet dog.

"Slow reactions happened. How are you feeling, falling from that height couldn't have been easy?" He asked, concerned for her wellbeing.

"That? A piece of cake, I just wish I got to see it pop from the outside, it must have looked awesome!" She cheered with a wide grin.

"That it definitely was." he affirmed, with a grin of his own.

"I'm glad you decided to help." She added in a softer tone.

"Me too." He stared into the girls lilac eyes, a moment of silence seemed to drag on between the two.

"Anyway," blurted Alex as he felt heat rise to his face, "We should really get going, there's not a lot of time left before you miss your deadline."

"Yeah you're right." Blurted Yang as she looked to the rest of her team.

"Come on," Ruby spoke still trying to clean herself, "Let's go home."

* * *

**Break Six**

* * *

As the five hunters reached the extraction zone, a small hill above the treeline, they spotted a lone bulldog parked on its surface, a young woman dressed in white pilot's garb, with short red hair and a set of goggles resting on her head, was leaning against it.

"Well look who it is, and with only," she glanced at her watch, "Six minutes to spare, I thought for sure you guys had bit it." At the sound of her mocking voice, Alex could feel his body get a little heavier.

"We're not that easy to kill." He answered in a lack lustre tone.

"Unfortunately," she quipped, looking passed Alex at the four girls behind him. One was drenched head to toe, the other three had weird black goo over parts of their bodies. "What happened to you guys?" she asked, bewildered.

The four girls looked between one another, "It's a long story." They all answered at the same time.

"Right, well, any mess in my Bulldog and you have to clean it, alright?"

"Yes." They all spoke, in a defeated tone, before they climbed lazily onto the airship.

With Amelia in the pilot's seat, she started up the engines, they whirred into life as the airship lifted from the ground. This time however Alex noticed that she left his side door open. After a few moments of catching their breath, Yang looked over to Alex, to find his face furrowed in concentration.

"Alex?" she called out, drawing the other girl's attention, and breaking him out of his deep thoughts. "Your face looked serious, what's the matter?" she asked concernedly.

"I was just thinking about something." He answered vaguely.

"Well don't keep us in suspense, what is it?" Weiss demanded, her curiosity getting the better of her.

Alex stood from his seat and held onto the safety rail over head, "First those strange Grimm attacked Yang the second she touched down, and then a Prime Grimm just happened to be under your mission objective. Something is very wrong here." As he spoke the girls looked worriedly between one another.

Yang spoke up, "Alright Alex, let's hear your thoughts, whatever they may be."

Alex straightened his back, his face became stern, in that moment Yang could tell that the playful hunter she knew was gone, before her stood Alex, a hunter from Foresight, and his expression showed he was serious about this.

"First things first, the Grimm that attacked Yang, based on what I saw, those were definitely not ordinary Grimm. My team has fought lab grown Grimm before, in fact Ashton has a file on an organisation that's been creating these atrocities for a while, a file he got from his father, who passed it on after he was killed. If the Grimm that attacked Yang were lab grown then that means the organisation had their hands in this mess. I won't ask why they were after you, if you even know at all." The girls looked between one another, Ruby was about to speak when Alex raised his hand, "You can tell me later, the why isn't important now, it's the how, like how were those Grimm there in the first place, and now of all times, unless…"

"They wanted me dead." Finished Yang, drawing worried looks from her friends.

"Not just you, you might have just been their first target, after they dealt with you they may have gone after Blake, picking you off one at a time. Still that's not my only concern, your relic was on top of a Prime Grimm, I know Ozpin likes to push his students, still that seems a little excessive."

"I thought so too," added Ruby, "I guess we won't really know though until we ask him."

"And that brings me to my most troubling worry, the timing. The Grimm that attacked Yang knew just when and where she would be. Who knows about your mission?" he asked, his tone commanding.

"Well Ozpin and Goodwitch of course." Weiss answered.

"I imagine a number of professors too." Added Blake.

"As well as our friends, we told them too." Ruby pointed out.

"Why Alex, what are you getting at?" Asked Yang quizzically.

"To know just when and where to strike, means that either there's an information leak somewhere, or there's a spy at Beacon."

Alex's conclusion, stunned the four girls, and a heavy silence hung in the air.

The partition between the hold and the cockpit slid open, as Amelia popped her head around. "Say, whilst I was waiting for you guys, a large hill just detonated out of nowhere, it was terrifying, I could feel the ground shake from where I stood, I thought for sure it was the end of the world. You guys wouldn't know anything about that would you?"

The girls of RWBY all looked at Alex, who looked out of the open door.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." He lied.

* * *

**A/N So how was it? Let me know in a handy review, if you enjoyed this chapter or not, constructive critisism is always appreciated.**

**As I said I will do my best to get more chapters out, a lot more quickly than this one.**

**And a thank you to all my favorites and followers, and to those who left reviews. I hope I'm still able to keep you entertained.**

**Thanks for reading :)**


	13. Conspiracies, Models

**A/N Just like I promised, a (slightly) shorter chapter in half the time.**

**Enjoy :)**

* * *

**Conspiracies, Models…**

_Beep, beep, beep – Beep, beep, be-BANG!_

A fist quickly silenced the alarm, before slowly retreating back under the mass of duvet. In the murky, dark room, the duvet began to wriggle on the bed until a set of silver eyes peered out from beneath. They glared at the offensive red light of the alarm clock.

7:24am

Groaning in frustration, Alex sluggishly pulled himself from the warmth of his duvet and into the cold air of his private room. He stretched his tired body, yawning loudly as he did.

"Guess we should get moving…" he groggily muttered to himself.

* * *

Alex went through the motions of his morning routine. He brushed his teeth, and then took a quick shower before putting on his exercise clothing. A pair of standard issue tracksuit bottoms and a jacket with Beacons emblem embroided on its chest. It was a navy blue colour with white stripes down the sides of the arms and legs, it didn't come in green, he had already asked. Once his trainers were tied he set off for his morning jog. Hunters have different routines for their mornings, some stuff their bodies with calories ready to be burnt off, some weight lift till their muscles beg for mercy, and others do as they please, their mornings changing depending on their mood that day; his always consisted of regular cardio, his trip into Vale with Weiss and Jaune allowed him to map the area and plot an easy jogging route. Usually he would run fifteen kilometres but today his body felt sluggish and tired, and so settled for just eight.

As he jogged along the streets his mind wandered to his teammates back at Foresight, after all, given his circumstances with Geralt, the psychotic madman hell bent on killing Alex, he wasn't allowed to tell his friends where he was going, they had been forced to stay on the academy grounds till his return, lest Geralt catch on that Alex was not there.

'Sorry guys just…try and stay out of trouble.'

"_Ten Liens says that Zin's already got into trouble."_

'I'm not stupid enough to take that bet.'

Feeling exhausted already he looked up into the brilliant cerulean blue sky. "No matter how much sleep I get, my body always feels slow, like it's out of sync with my brain." He complained as he jogged on the spot at a set of traffic lights. The early morning rush was about to begin, as it was, equal amounts of cars and people began to flood the city streets as they made their way through the daily grind. Forty-five minutes later and Alex had returned to Beacon high. The scorching sun made its way lazily across the sky, drenching everything in its hot rays. He was panting and drew ragged and heavy breaths into his lungs; sweat ran down his cheeks and dripped from his chin.

It had been twenty four hours since they returned from the Eternity Forest; Team RWBY gave their report to their professor.

'From what I've heard, they're expecting good marks, and since Ozpin hasn't asked to see me, I can assume they left out the part about my intervention.'

Even so, Alex had questions for Ozpin, like why was the relic placed at a lake that contained a Prime Grimm? Then there was the information leak, which the hunter was convinced was the work of a spy. As such, he kept a constant vigil for anything out of the ordinary; he still maintained his regular pattern however. If he was under surveillance, then changes in his routine might tip them off that he knows about them.

Making his way across the campus grounds, he found himself smiling at the students that passed him by; in return Alex received a few smiles and some waves, even a few call outs.

"_I see you're starting to make a name for yourself here. I remember on your way here you were all like 'Oh I'm not gonna make any friends, just gonna keep my head down and get through this as painless as possible'"_

He couldn't fault Arras, after all he wasn't wrong, and Alex never planned on getting this close to the students here. Beacon had a way of lowering your guard and opening your heart.

* * *

**Break One**

* * *

After another quick shower and a change into his regular clothes, black shirt, green leather jacket and a pair of denim jeans, he made his way into the refectory. As usual, the place was packed with students beginning another morning at school. He spotted the familiar faces of his new friends sitting together at a table before he headed to the cafeteria. As he grabbed a tray and placed a sandwich, drink and banana on it, his mind began to wander.

A spy at Beacon was troubling, if they leaked Team RWBY's mission then that means they must work for the Organisation, the proof being that the creatures that attacked Yang were no ordinary Grimm. They were man made, manufactured in a lab, they shared similarities with the creature that Ashton claimed attacked his father and killed his uncle. This Organisation sent a chill down Alex's spine, whoever they were they weren't to be taken lightly, Grimm experimentation is outlawed near enough across the entire planet, yet they not only perform the experiments, they release their handiwork on unsuspecting victims. This means that they either don't care that they're found out, or are sure that no one ever will.

'If there is a spy and they work for the Organisation, then why are they here? Are they here for me because of my connection to Ashton? He does have a file on their past dealings thanks to his father and his constant work against them. Or are they here for another reason? They did go after Team RWBY after all, but why?'

As polluted thoughts circled through his mind he subconsciously made his way over to the girls of RWBY and sat down at their table without so much as a hello. They all stared at the young man who was clearly lost in his thoughts. Sensing something was wrong Alex snapped back to reality and looked up from his tray to find the four girls glaring at him.

"Erm…is something wrong?" he asked confused.

"What the hell kind of greeting is that!?" snapped Yang.

"You walk over here in a daze, you don't even acknowledge us, and you have the gall to ask _us _if something is wrong?" added Weiss in an equally harsh tone. Blake and Ruby merely shook their heads in disappointment. Letting out a sigh, the hunter stood up with his tray in hand.

"You're right; I wasn't thinking straight, I'm sorry. Let me try that again." Stepping away from the table, he made his way in a circle around the hall. This time as he approached the girls, he was grinning from ear to ear. "Hey there guys, didn't expect to find you's here. Mind if I sit with you?"

Catching on to his little act Ruby joined in. "Green! Sit next to me!" she called out, patting the seat next to her. Alex quickly seated himself before looking at each of the girls.

"Good morning everyone, good day so far?" He noticed that they were wearing their school uniforms, despite only being back for less than a day it was right back to their daily life without so much as a break.

"I'm just glad to have a hot shower." Blake stretched as she answered.

"And a warm bed." Yang added, as she finished off the last of her breakfast cereal dropping her spoon into the empty bowl with a clink.

"Yeah, but I'm starting to think my bed is cursed, no matter how much I sleep my body always feels tired." The hunter complained as he tore open the packaging of his ham and egg sandwich before devouring it.

"Sounds a lot like Blake, recently she's just as hard to wake up as Yang!" informed Weiss as she looked to the Faunus girl, "I wonder if they're related." She added, a mischievous smile could almost be seen at the corner of her lips.

"Why would they be related?" asked Alex, confused.

"Oh I'm sure they're not, your suffering probably isn't Blake's fault…probably." She answered vaguely.

Alex merely stared at the white haired girl with a confused look, what puzzled him more was the sudden burst of anger he could feel surge up within him. Shaking his thoughts he moved the conversation along.

"Say, I know I told you not to tell me as we left the forest, but, I truly believe there is someone here leaking information. Not only that, but they leaked the plans of your mission, before sending monsters to finish the job. My question is why, and who would want to take you out of the picture?" hearing the young man's question; the girls all shared a pensive look.

Just before Ruby was about to speak, a thought struck Alex, he quickly raised his hand. "Not here." He quickly scanned the room, "Too many eyes and ears." Scoffing down his sandwich and banana, he stood from the table drink in hand. "Follow me."

The five hunters made their way through the busy corridors of Beacon. Students moved hurriedly to their next class, or hung around chatting with friends. The first years were easy to spot, running around in a mad dash, frantically scanning their scrolls and the school map. Whilst the higher years took their time, no doubt use to the comings and goings of Beacon.

"Oooh this is exciting!" Ruby squealed, her body tensing from a surge of adrenaline, "It's all very cloak and dagger, it's like we're spies!" she blurted out grabbing hold of Weiss's arm. Weiss's cheeks tinged a slight red as she watched the young girl's excitement, before turning to their guide.

"Where exactly are we going?" she asked.

"My room." His reply was blunt.

"Your room!?" The girls blurted at the same time.

Not bothering to explain Alex arrived in front of his quarters. Removing a small card he placed it on the metal scanner beside the door. With a small whoosh the door slid open and he led them inside. The girl slowly moved about the spacious room. In front of them on an elevated platform was the double bed, to their left were two brown leather couches facing one another, a small rectangular, wooden table sat between them. A door was each on the left and right wall, the kitchen and bathroom respectively.

"Wow," muttered Blake, as she moved passed the bed to the window which dominated the back wall, the view of the forest that hugged Beacons east side was a gorgeous sight. "This is what you wake up to?" Alex shook his head in response.

"Nah, I usually have the curtains pulled close, the light bugs me when I'm trying to sleep." Blake merely rolled her eyes at his response.

"For a guy's room it's very tidy." Yang commented, with her hands on her hips.

"That's because it ain't my room, this is the guest quarters, and of course I'm going to keep it tidy." He pointed out as a matter of fact. "You guys want a drink before we get all serious?" he asked, opening the door to the kitchen and vanishing round the corner.

"I'll have water." Weiss answered.

"Oh, I'll take anything fizzy!" Yang called out.

"A can of Savage okay?" the hunter called back.

"Yup." She confirmed.

"Oh, I'd like a can too!" Ruby added.

"I'll just have milk please." Blake finally replied. Alex's head popped up in the doorway, he eyed Blake suspiciously.

"I thought cats couldn't have milk?" he quizzed. Blake's eyes widened but before she could respond, Yang waved her hand dismissively.

"She can have some, too much though and she gets gassy."

"YANG!" the Faunus girl screamed at the top of her lungs. Her partner chuckled at her outburst.

"Sorry, couldn't resist." She patted Blake on the back as reassurance, who merely sighed. Alex however, hadn't moved, and continued to eye her.

"Do you…want me to put it in a bowl for you?" Yang and Ruby immediately burst out laughing.

"That is not funny!" Blake reprimanded, despite her words, she couldn't help but smile.

After his teasing, Alex retrieved the girl's drinks and set it down on a rectangular table, in between the two couches. Yang and Alex sat on one, whilst the others took the other couch.

"Alright, so I want to know who you'd think would go to extreme lengths to remove you guys from the picture?" taking the drink he brought with him from the cafeteria, he popped it open before giving it a swig. The girls looked at one another, before turning to Alex.

"We had a run in with a criminal a while back." The young leader began to explain.

"We were instructed to keep this information to ourselves, however seeing as you got dragged in we all decided last night to tell you." Weiss added. Alex locked eyes with each of the girls before nodding for them to continue.

"He was a mastermind of a dozen Dust robberies across Vale before we intervened, we put a halt to one of his operations, since then he's gone into hiding. We think that he might have returned." Blake explained, before taking a sip of her milk, "His name is Torchwick."

Alex's blood boiled within him, an image of a tall man, with ginger hair, wearing a white coat and a bowler hat popped into his mind. He shook his head in confusion, after all, Alex had never seen such a man before, nor has he ever heard the name Torchwick. Seeing the hunters confused look Yang spoke up.

"Are you okay Alex?" she asked.

"Yeah, I feel like I've met this man, but that's impossible, right?" at his words, both Yang and Blake shared a worried look.

"In any case, if anyone was responsible, then he's the only one that comes to mind." Weiss finished explaining, with that the girls leaned back into their seats. Alex took a moment to process the information.

"Now it's our turn to ask you a question." Weiss' words snapped the hunter back to reality, he looked at her quizzically. "Back in Eternity Forest, you mentioned some organisation that created the creatures that attacked Yang, who are they and what do they want?"

Alex leaned back into the sofa, placing his hands behind his head, "Man, where do I even begin?" clapping his hands together he leaned forward. "Right, so, there's this shadow faction that we know little about, so little in fact that we don't even know their name, we just like to call them 'The Organisation'. We know that they perform experiments on humans and Grimm alike. We don't know what they want or what their goal is, we only know that whatever they're doing, is costing a lot of lives. Ashton's father, a man by the name of Zcholts, had a run in with an artificial Grimm nearly two decades ago. The Grimm was almost entirely mist; it possessed the body of Zcholts brother, Rick, and turned brother against brother. Left with little choice Zcholts was forced to kill his younger sibling." Alex's story was starting to sink in for the girls, their faces took a look of sadness, Ruby and Yang shared a quiet look. "After that Zcholts dedicated the rest of his life tracking those responsible. Sadly, the Organisation caught up with him, and through a series of very long events, ended up taking his life too."

"And the file he created was passed onto Ashton?" Blake asked, fitting the pieces together.

"Bingo, there's a little more to it than that, but yeah. So, the file didn't contain much, but it was enough to give Ashton some good places to start. Obviously the rest of us weren't exactly going to let him go it alone, so we helped him when we could. We got a few leads and hit them where it hurt, of course, things didn't get better. We ended up getting a sneak peek at the scope of this faction," Alex shook his head, "We had only scratched the surface. Right, so here's what we know. There's a head honcho, don't know if it's a he, she, it, a group of people, or some advanced AI controlling humans for fun, but there _is_ someone pulling all the strings, we just don't know who. What we do know is that the faction splits into four divisions, and each division is overseen by a lord. Again, I know it's not very impressive, but we don't know the identity of these lords either, we do know that each division is independent from the other. An agent from one branch won't be able to recognise the agent of another. We also know the goals of each individual division." Alex stopped to take drink before continuing; "Now this is where things go from bad to worse." Alex clenched his right fist and raised his thumb, "The first division is experimenting on Grimm, enhancing them and modifying them into nightmarish creatures, and Yang has seen for herself what kind of power they possess."

Yang gave a nod, "It's not like normal Grimm was bad enough, now some idiots are messing with them and making them stronger." Her disdain was obvious in her tone.

Alex continued his explanation, "I'm not sure what exactly they're trying to accomplish, but given that they release their new toys on people it's safe to say they need to be shut down." At this statement the girls all gave a firm nod. Alex now raised his index finger, "The second division is in charge of human experimentation. Cybernetics and genetic enhancements and the like, we've even seen them infuse Dust into people bodies. Their goal is a little easier to understand; obviously theirs is for the advancement of humankind."

"If that's the case then is this division so bad?" Ruby asked hesitantly.

"I thought so too at first, but, when you see how they go about their experiments, you see a very different side to them. People, cut open and dissected, limbs are forcefully removed only to be replaced with machinery. I don't know the details I mean, I'm no scientist, but the human body rejects the machine part, the result…is less than pleasant. As for genetic manipulation, drugs, chemicals and all sorts are pumped into people like lab rats; they go through excruciating pain and torture before dying, all in the name of refining the process. I don't know what they're trying to achieve, but from the hundreds of people that we know that have died from their tests, the ends clearly don't justify the means."

The girls stared shocked at Alex, "Did you say…_hundreds _of people?" muttered Weiss in dis-belief.

"Perhaps more." His words were poison, causing the heiress' stomach to churn in a mixture of disgust and anger.

"If so many people are killed why haven't you gone to the authorities, why haven't you told anyone about this!?" Yang demanded, slamming her fist on the table.

Alex sighed in exasperation, "Because we have no definitive proof. The words of a dead man and the confession of Organisation agents under…duress are hardly proof."

"Why do I get the feeling 'under duress' really means torture?" Blake's tone was flat.

"Zin is really good at what he does." He replied immediately. "Moving on," he began, extending his middle finger, "The third Division is a little harder to understand, from what we've gathered they seem to be focusing on terrorist attacks, we've heard of some plots to remove a cities defences and let it get overrun by Grimm, if so, we have no clue as to what the purpose of this is." The girls looked thoughtful for a moment.

"It doesn't matter." Declared Blake, "If they're trying to cause the senseless deaths of thousands of innocent people then they need to be stopped!" everyone nodded in agreement.

"And this final Division?" asked Weiss. Alex's face became twisted with anger, his fist became clenched.

"They…are the sickest of them all!" the hunter spat through gritted teeth, the girls looked worried to one another. "They are focused on human-Grimm hybrids." Alex's words were like a bombshell, the girls were merely left shell-shocked, Weiss's mouth open and closed repeatedly as she struggled to find the words. Ruby trembled slightly who looked to her big sister for support. Yang's fist clenched as she struggled to contain her anger. Blake sighed and hung her head.

"Selfish aren't I?" she muttered under her breath. Everyone looked to the raven haired girl, "Here I was worried about some criminal when you clearly have much bigger things to worry about." She spoke as she looked to Alex, her eyes glossed with wetness.

Alex shook his head, "This Torchwick guy might be connected to the bigger picture, and you said he's robbing dust shipments? Without dust to power the cities defences, then Vale could be at risk of a Grimm siege, sounds like the work of the third division to me. Besides, just because there might be something worse out there doesn't mean you should ignore everything else. We'll get Torchwick, he needs to be stopped, and he needs to give me some answers."

"We're straying off topic, these human-Grimm hybrids, what exactly does that mean?" asked Weiss, bringing the conversation back on track.

"For the record, we haven't seen how it's done, and we haven't met any of their subjects, though if we have, I wonder if we'd be able to tell?" He added ominously, "Zinear managed to get a hold of a data drive, encrypted but he knew some people, we eventually got the data within. It showed technology I've never even heard of, the ability to remove the Aura of one person and implant it within another. Now I know what you're all thinking, that an Aura is the manifestation of a person's soul, so transplanting an Aura is essentially tearing out a person's soul and planting it within someone else. Sounds impossible, but we've seen the designs for such a device, and let's not forget, technology has always allowed us to do a lot that once seemed impossible."

"Technology to subvert nature." Blake added. Alex nodded in agreement.

"The process was a little confusing at first, it seems that they take a person's Aura, and plant it with a Grimm, if the Grimm survives the process, the Aura becomes its own."

"A Grimm with a soul!?" blurted out Ruby, a look of shock on her face.

"Not only that, but what used to be a human soul at that." Blake added shaking her head mournfully.

"Once the Grimm has its soul, they do one of two things; they either leave the Grimm be and see what happens with a human soul inside it, or remove the Grimm's soul and plant it back into the original host." He continued to explain, his tone was flat as he tried to suppress his anger. What Alex was saying was considered monstrous, nothing like this had been done before, and it was unlikely anyone had even conceived of such an idea as to make human-Grimm hybrids, yet The Organisation not only designed the idea, but also built the technology to make such a thing possible.

"What happens on both accounts?" Weiss asked, it was hard to tell from her features, but Alex could tell that a part of her didn't want to hear the answer.

"Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, we haven't seen what happens. As I said, we only saw the designs for the plans, not the actual experiment ourselves." He leaned back on the sofa having finally finished his explanation. "And that's it, all we know about this shadow faction."

"You'd think…you'd think that someone would have caught wind of this by now!?" Yang spat, she was leaning forward with her elbows propped on her knees. Her golden locks shielding her face from view, but judging from her aggressive tone, her face was skewered with anger.

"There might be for all we know, others who have caught wind and are pursuing them independently. However, everyone we knew who was chasing this faction has ended up dead or missing." The girls shared an uneasy look, it might have been an answer to Yang's question, but it was also a veiled warning, '_Follow my footsteps and you may lose your life' _that is what Alex's answer told them.

"Then how have you managed to survive for so long?" Blake asked, not letting herself be put off.

"My guess? We're not a threat. We find leads and follow them up, but they're usually one step ahead of us. A lead on a research facility turns out to be a pile of rubble; a storage facility is no more than an abandoned warehouse. Every time we get close or chase up a lead, the organisation has already cleaned house, the evidence is removed and all leads are destroyed. I'm guessing we're no more than a nuisance and eliminating us might only provoke others looking into things. Right now to them, we might be no more than chasing their shadow."

Silence filled the room, the atmosphere was heavy, each of them had slumped shoulders or hung their heads, almost as if the atmosphere was pressing down on them.

"So, what's your next move?" Blake asked, her voice soft. Alex's eyes became sharp and focused.

"Torchwick. If this guy has connections to the organisation then I need to find out, and if he's threatening my friends then all the more reason for me to put a stop to him."

"With your help, he won't stand a chance against us!" Ruby bellowed with pride, slamming her small fist against her chest in a show of bravado, however she hit herself a little too hard and started coughing. "Too hard…too hard…" Weiss calmly patted the young girls back.

"Ruby's right, the authorities can't stop him, it's up to us hunters and huntress's to protect this city!" Yang boomed rising to her feet.

"Hmph, you're all talk Yang." Mocked the heiress.

"Oh yeah? Just watch me; I'll bring down Torchwick single handed!"

"Well it looks like Yang is all fired up now." Chuckled Blake, watching quietly from her sofa.

Alex enjoyed the peaceful scene before him; the liveliness of the girls dispelled the heavy atmosphere as if it had never existed. Sat on the comfy leather sofa, his head resting on its warm leather he calmly watched the girls of RWBY laugh and joke with one another, the atmosphere was one he sorely missed. He could almost see them, his friends and teammates, Zinear and Ashton bickering like Yang and Weiss do. Zinear overstepping the line and Razlov intervening with a quick punch to the back of the mercs head. Zinear apologising whilst Ashton laughs at the turn of events. Razlov calmly telling Zinear off like a strict parent. Alex was smiling, he missed them immeasurably. The bond between hunters was strong and unyielding, living alongside one another, through the calmest of moments to the deadliest of fights, relying, trusting, needing, helping, laughing, crying, hurting, and smiling. Bonds that no ordinary person could understand.

As he continued to watch the girls, on his comfy sofa, within his warm room, as the burning sun's rays filtered through the back window tinting everything in yellow and orange hues, Alex felt his eyelids grow heavy.

"…and she was reading my book!" declared Blake.

"Ruby!" scolded Weiss, "Why were you reading her book?"

"But they're sooo good!"

"Ruby you shouldn't be reading _those _kinds of books." Yang added.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Blake shot back.

"_Ninjas in Love_? We all know what kind of book that is Blake!" Yang retorted.

Alex began to chuckle in the background causing the girl to look at him quizzically. "Something funny there, Alex?" Yang questioned, threateningly.

The hunter, with his head resting on the back of the sofa and his eyes closed peacefully, continued to lightly chuckle to himself, "Oh nothing, I'm just wondering how long it'll take you to realise I slipped sedatives into each of your drinks, and once they take effect…it's party time!" The room was filled with stunned silence. As the seconds dragged on, Alex couldn't contain himself and began to laugh hysterically.

Grabbing the hunter by his collar, Yang pulled him to his feet and shook him, "You think that was funny, what kind of messed up joke was that, Alex!?"

"Alex? Who's this Alex you speak of?" The hunter opened his eyes, the blood red ovals glared at Yang, who quickly released him.

"Arras! Should have guessed. Where's Alex?" Yang spoke through gritted teeth; she never did like Arras, not because of the duel, or the way he handled Junior and the sisters, something before that, something about him always put her on edge.

"Taking a nap. What's the matter Yang, don't like me?" he asked stepping close to the huntress, "It might be me in here but it's still Alex's body. Go on, I'll let you touch it, I know you've been dying too." He leaned dangerously close to the girl whilst simultaneously lifting up his shirt.

"As if you freak!" Yang bellowed as she swung for him. With a burst of speed, unseen by anyone, Arras stood behind the huntress, her swing hitting nothing but air.

"Seems as though you were all enjoying a lovely chat, I just had to come out and join in the fun." Arras spoke in a snobbish tone as he calmly shrugged at the altercation. Yang glared at him, but made no further attempts on his life. "It also seems like you've got Alex on board the 'down with Torchwick' bandwagon. This should make things easier moving forward." He stated as a matter of fact.

"You're not against us informing him?" Blake queried.

"Why would I? I've been hitting a brick wall in tracking Torchwick down. Alex is smarter than me, and less prone to violence. Think of him as diplomacy and me as…violent…diplomacy…anyway it'll be better having him on board." Arras moved passed Yang and sat back down on the couch, mimicking Alex's position before he slept. "Of course, let's not tell him about my little excursions, speaking of which…" the hunter looked to Blake.

"No way! Let Alex enjoy a couple of nights of peace." Weiss interjected, Arras shot her a glare but Blake nodded in agreement.

"Weiss is right, you should give the body a rest, continue your hunt in a few days, and I'll join you when I can." Blake added, in an attempt to convince him. Arras merely sighed and closed his eyes.

"I guess that's the best I can hope for." And with those final words Arras vanished. The slow steady rhythm of Alex's breathing returned, and a second later, he sluggishly opened his eyes.

"Wha…sorry did I fall asleep?" the hunter lazily asked, as he sat forward.

"Only for a minute, it's fine." Yang reassured, smiling at the young man, who looked to her before returning the smile.

"Guess this means I should keep moving." He spoke as he rose and stretched, letting out a yawn. Glancing at the scroll on his arm he glanced the time. "Crap, it's passed ten; I need to go meet Jaune to prep for his duel!" Alex quickly made for the door.

"That reminds me, I take it you'll all be there for the unveiling of Jaune 2.0?" he added returning to his cheery self.

"You bet! I can't wait to see him in action!" cheered the young leader.

"Let's see if all that training really was worth it." Weiss commented.

"Still, his opponent is Nathaniel; he'll be a tough one to beat." Blake added.

Alex's eyes widened in dis-belief before he frantically shook his head, "I can't believe I forgot to get information on his opponent, this exhaustion is starting to piss me off."

"If its information you want, then you've come to the right place!" Yang grinned, "Lucky you know someone who's fought and beat him in a duel." She added with a helping of ego.

"Really?" Alex exclaimed, "Spill!" he ordered.

"He wields a katana, and his attacks are fast and precise, quicker than I could see." She began to explain. "His weakness is his movements, for some reason, he mostly holds his position and strikes his opponent the second they enter his range. He's also rather full of himself, he got angry real quick once I mocked him" She finished.

"If that's the case, how did you beat him?" asked the hunter.

"Please, you think some scratches like that could stop me from socking him one in the jaw?"

Alex nodded in understanding, given what it took him and Arras to put her down; he doubted this Nathaniel stood much of a chance. Quickly forming a strategy in his mind, he finished his breakfast.

"Thanks for the info, I'm gonna go catch up with Jaune then." As he turned to the door he looked at them one last time, "Feel free to leave whenever you want, and I better see you all there at twelve sharp. You won't want to miss this." He added with a wide grin.

"Aye sah!" replied Ruby with a mock salute.

* * *

**Break Two**

* * *

Alex quickly exited his room and made his way back through Beacon. The morning classes had started, the halls were a little quieter now. Holding his arm out in front of him he began to type on his scroll, he was about to call Jaune when someone walked straight into his chest, stumbling back, he instinctively grabbed the person's arms to steady them.

"Sorry 'bout that, I…" he stopped as recognised the person, "Miranda?" The person he in fact held was a small girl with a slender build, her wavy blue hair was tied into a ponytail and she stared at him with her deep hazel eyes.

"Alex, it's been a while?" she added in a soft voice. Noticing his grip on her he quickly let go, before noticing her school uniform.

"Yeah it has, sorry for barging into you that was reckless of me." He apologised whilst sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.

Miranda shook her head, "No, it was mine; I should have been looking where I was going." After they both apologised an awkward silence hung between the two.

"Well I should let you go to class; it was good to see you again." He spoke as he moved passed her.

"Alex!" she called out, causing the hunter to look back. "If you don't mind, I have…a small favour I'd like to ask of you."

* * *

"You know…it's a little embarrassing when you stare at it so intently." Alex murmured, he shifted his gaze, feeling slightly uncomfortable.

"Oh, sorry, I just really wanted to see it!" Beamed Miranda.

"Do you also have to take a video of it?" the hunter quickly asked. Miranda looked up from her scroll, their eyes briefly meeting.

After reluctantly accepting the young girl's request, she quickly led the both of them into an empty closet. In the dimly lit space Miranda was slightly crouched, as she continued to record the object of her desire, Alex's burning green fire.

"Ever since I witnessed it after your duel with Yang I couldn't get it off my mind!" she whispered excitedly. Alex's hand was consumed in green fire, he held it steady as the young girl continued to catch the dancing flames on her scroll. "Did you know that healing Semblances are extremely rare!" the girl was talking rapidly and excitedly. Witnessing the girl's enthusiasm, the hunter chose to remain quiet and let Miranda continue on. "I mean, we all have the ability to heal minor wounds, thanks to our Aura's, and then of course there are combat medics like myself, who use our own Aura to boost another's, but that isn't our Semblance, that's merely Aura manipulation."

Alex briefly remembered Foresight's Hanta Kira, their internal police force tasked with keeping hunters in check and hunting them down if they go AWOL. Hanta Kira are trained to use their Aura to drain a hunter of theirs.

"But a Semblance with the ability to heal wounds is…amazing. What is the range of healing? Can it heal major wounds? Maybe Fatal wounds? Can you only heal yourself or can you heal others as well? How many could you heal at once?" the questions fired off at a rapid rate, Alex quickly raised his free left hand to silence the young girl.

"Slow down, I'll try to answer as best I can. My Semblance can heal almost any wound, barring dismemberment. I can easily heal others as well, which is why even as a leader I'm also a support role. As for its range…" the image of his fire coating an entire forest briefly popped into his mind, "…yeah, I'd say it's got a pretty good range." He added, with a knowing smile.

"Amazing, I became a medic because I've always wanted to help others, I never thought I'd get to see an actual healing Semblance with my own eyes." Alex couldn't help get lost in the girl's deep hazel eyes; they sparkled with delight as she watched the flames dance on the screen of her scroll. "Thank you for this Alex, you really are a kind person." She murmured without shifting her gaze. The odd comment caused Alex to blush a little.

"Oh, yeah it's no problem. Also, how do you know I'm a kind person? Haven't you heard the rumours about Foresight? We're all psychopaths and monsters, remember?" He added jokingly, yet as Miranda looked up at the young man, her face was serious yet she had a gentle look in her eyes.

"I can tell because of your Semblance. It is the personification of your soul, a psychopath or monster wouldn't possess a Semblance that healed others. No, you are a kind man with a gentle soul." She spoke her words as if they were a fact and her gaze never shifted from the hunter. Feeling heat rise into his cheeks Alex looked away grinning like an idiot; he began to rub the back of his head with his free hand.

"Well it's hard to argue when you look so serious." He spoke with a light chuckle. The young girl's eyes widened, realising what she just said.

"I'm so sorry; I didn't mean to be so blunt! It's just that when it comes to Semblances I-"

Alex waved his hand, "I know, you're very passionate about it and I think that's amazing." The young girl pouted a little before looking back at the screen.

Minutes passed as the girl silently recorded the flames, "It really is amazing to watch, almost hypnotic." She quietly muttered to herself, "If I could test out this Semblances ability, find out how just how powerful it is…"

"Hey! Remember this Semblance is attached to a person, a very _late _person." Alex spoke up shaking the girl from her thoughts.

"Ahh, I'm sorry!" she quickly stood stiff straight, "I've taken up so much of your time!" Miranda quickly opened the closet door and out into the hallway. "Thank you so much Alex that was amazing!" the girl beamed happily.

"Yeah, anytime Miranda." The hunter spoke as he squinted a little at the sudden brightness of the hallway.

"Okay, well I'll leave you to it. Thanks again" The girl quickly dashed off down the corridor and around the corner. Once out of sight Alex placed his hands on his hips, hung his head and let out a sigh.

"_Yeah, Alex old buddy, you might want to be aware of your surroundings." _Completely focused on Miranda the hunter hadn't realized the dozens of students that littered the hallway, they stood in groups away from the hunter, they quickly whispered amongst themselves.

"Were those two in that closet together?"

"I can't believe what I just saw!"

"On school grounds, how daring~"

"Team RWBY and now the hot combat medic! We need to ask him to teach us his ways!"

Alex was about to say something, when he hung his head and let out another sigh.

"What's the point, let's go find Jaune." He added dejectedly.

* * *

**Break Three**

* * *

After a quick call to confirm his location, Alex made his way out of Beacon and back onto the campus grounds. No matter how many times he came to this spot, it was always refreshing. The hunter statue in the centre of the courtyard, a small fountain in front of it. Students of all ages running around, some lazing in the heat of the sun, enjoying another gorgeous day in Vale. Laughter and shouts filled the air; the atmosphere was the very definition of joyous. Alex stood next to the statue, watching everyone go about their day.

"Alex!" A familiar voice called out, causing the hunter to smile.

"Jaune!" he called back as he turned to spot the knight jogging over to him. Jaune held out his clenched fist and Alex bumped it with his own.

"Thought you would have been here a lot earlier." Admitted the young knight.

"Yeah sorry, got a little tied up with some stuff."

"No biggie, just glad you finally made it is all." A nervous chuckle escaped his lips.

"Relax Jaune, no need to be so nervous." He assured, patting the white knight on the shoulder.

"Easy for you to say, you're not the one facing Nathaniel in there." He spoke gesturing to the arena hall.

"Nathaniel? Then you already know who your opponent is?" Alex asked, bemused.

"Of course, after all it was you who said that information is a hunter's greatest weapon."

Alex inwardly spat at himself, where he forgot to assess Jaune's opponent, he had already gone and done it for himself.

"_That awkward moment where Jaune Arc is acting like a better hunter than you." _Arras quietly mocked.

Alex sighed heavily, unable to refute his partner. "Good going Jaune, looks like my training wasn't all for nothing." He mocked trying to hide his own shame at his failure.

"Yeah you were a pretty good teach, I'll give you that." Jaune added with a smile.

"Just remember your defensive postures, and please don't block your vision with your shield, unless you want to have your legs frozen again?"

"Oh please don't remind me, my chest still hurts thinking about it." Jaune complained as he rubbed his chest.

"Well even if he does freeze your legs, at least now you've got a way out." Alex spoke glancing at his Dust Blade.

Just then a loud commotion drew their attention, across the courtyard was a single man surrounded by a dozen girls; the commotion was their joyous squeals at his presence.

"Great, just what this story needs a pretentious douchebag who's popular with the ladies." Alex mocked.

"But doesn't this story already have you Alex?" Jaune quickly added much to his satisfaction.

"Oh har har, who is he anyway?" he asked, looking back over at the man. Even though they were quite far away, Alex could clearly make out his features.

'He must be well over six foot; he practically towers over the girls.' He thought to himself. The mysterious man seemed like he wasn't a fan of the attention, he held his hands up in defence as he slowly backed away from the girls. His shoulder length black hair blew in the gentle breeze revealing his soft features; he was smiling politely, no doubt trying to persuade his followers from giving him some space.

"Him? I think his name is Kai, he's a first year, and supposedly he used to be a model, but turned hunter a few months ago." Jaune answered.

"A model? That seems like quite the career change?" Alex pointed out, his friend merely shrugged.

"Who knows?" Just as Alex was thinking about approaching Kai, the popular man looked over in their direction. With a knowing smile he quickly said something to his fans before jogging away from them.

"Hi there!" he called once he was in ear shot.

"Hey." Alex replied.

"Yo." Added Jaune.

"Sorry to interrupt you two, my name is Kai; it's a pleasure to meet you both." The tall hunter added a slight bow to his greeting.

"_Oh how formal of him~" _Arras cooed at the unusual greeting.

"Uh, yeah, nice to meet you too, the name's Alex, and this is my friend Jaune." He gestured to the hunter beside him, who gave a slight wave. Alex couldn't help but notice that his throng of fans now refused to approach him; instead they watched their exchange with curious eyes from afar.

"_Do you feel that?" _Arras asked, a little unsure of himself.

"You noticed it too, it feels like…bloodlust." The familiar feeling of someone targeting Alex with thoughts of hate and aggression tinged his senses. He glanced back at the girls lingering away and now noticed that some of them scowled at him, a shiver ran down his spine.

'Just how jealous are these girls!' he yelled in his mind.

"Alex, I've heard a lot about you, you're practically a celebrity here!" Kai beamed, snapping Alex away from the piranhas that threatened to kill him for merely talking to this man.

"Says you, you're the one with your own fan club." He spoke gesturing to the group glaring at him, "Your own deadly fan club." He added in a whisper.

"Oh, them, yeah, hazards of my previous job." Kai explained.

"You wouldn't happen to be using us would you Kai?" Alex added with a threatening smile. The ex-model became flustered for a second before sighing in resignation.

"I apologise, those girls have been hounding me all morning, do you have any idea how hard it is to get any training done?!" he exclaimed, "So when I saw you two, I knew for sure they wouldn't come near me if I was with you." At his explanation, the two hunters squinted at him.

"Thanks…I think?" Jaune added looking to his friend.

Alex looked back at him. "Was that supposed to be a compliment?"

Kai quickly raised his hands, "No, sorry, I didn't mean any offense, it's just that with the way you two are, I knew they wouldn't pester us."

"The way we are?!" Jaune exclaimed in confusion.

Alex raised his hand, calming Jaune, "Hang on, let's give him a chance to explain."

"Well, you know, I've heard about you guys, I don't have anything against you of course; I think everyone should be with the person they love." He explained with a genuine smile. It was clear to Alex; Kai genuinely believed that he and Jaune were a couple.

"L-l-l-love!? We are not in love, we are just friends!" Jaune screamed at the hunter.

"Jaune!" Alex grabbed a hold of his shoulder, turning him towards him. "We…don't have to deny it anymore." He calmly stated. Jaune's' face went red, his mouth hung open in shock. "We should tell him the truth…about us." He took a step closer to the knight, bringing their bodies close together. Jaune stumbled back in shock,

"I-I-I am not in love with you!" he yelled in Alex's face.

"Wow, Jaune, way to be insensitive, I can't believe you would reject him so harshly." Kai spoke with disgust, genuinely appalled with the knight's reaction.

"No, I didn't mean to…wait, yes I did, I mean…ARGH!" Jaune's ruffled his hair in frustration before stomping away. "I have a duel to get ready for!" and with that, there were only two left.

"You have it rough Alex." Kai still genuinely believed what he saw was a real confession, much to Alex's amusement.

"You said it." He spoke turning back to Kai with a smile. "Well enough about me, with my lover gone are you sure those piranhas will stay back?" he asked looking to the Kai fan club.

Kai sighed as he glanced at them, "I wish nobody found out who I used to be."

"A model right? Quite the career move if I do say so myself."

"Yeah, well, something big happened, and I didn't want to be a model anymore."

"Why become a hunter though?" Alex queried, he knew he was digging a little too deep for a first encounter, but something behind his calm polite façade was grating against Alex, he couldn't stop himself.

"Because I had too, I had to make sure…" his voice trailed off.

"Make sure what? That no one else died?" At Alex's words, Kai's head snapped forward. "What? Are you surprised? I've met countless hunters just like you."

"You don't know me; you don't know the pain I've gone through!" Kai screamed at him, his eyes glossing with wetness.

"The pain of losing someone close to you? Let me guess, parents? Lover? Sister?" at that last guess Kai clenched his eyes shut, squeezing a tear free. "I'm not going to tell you that your pain means nothing, but don't think for a moment that you're special, or that no-one understands what you're going through." Alex stepped towards the hunter and looked him in the eye. "I lost my family, and watched my two best friends die; I know my fair share of pain and grief. What happened to your sister was tragic, and I truly am sorry for your loss, I wish I could have met her." Alex spoke soft kind words, Kai felt his strength collapse, large tears now flowed from the young man's eyes, and his body shook as he wept. He collapsed into his hands, sobbing heavily. The bloodlust Alex felt grew in intensity, watching their idol cry, the girls now glared at him something fierce. Ignoring them Alex placed a hand on the grieving man's shoulder. "What happened to her must have changed you, to become a hunter so quickly and get accepted into Beacon, you must have worked incredibly hard at it."

Kai pulled himself from his hands and stared at Alex through red eyes, "You…don't think I'm a natural?"

"What? Sorry Kai, I've seen a lot of naturally gifted hunters and you my friend are not one of them. Nope, what you have, you got through dedication, I have to say, I'm a little proud of you." Alex added with a smile.

"When you said you knew countless people like me and that I wasn't special, I thought you were a jerk, but, you're not so bad after all." Kai began to wipe the tears from his eyes, "Jeez, I can't believe I cried in front of someone I just met, how pathetic."

"I don't think it's pathetic, a cry every now and then is good for you. When you feel up to it, I'd like to hear about this sister of yours?"

Kai nodded, "Sure, but you gotta tell me about your friends."

"Deal. Well, I should get going; I have a duel to watch. Oh and Kai, don't try to use your grief to push people away, a lot of students here probably went through similar things to yourself. You're a lot of things Kai, but you're not alone." Alex waved goodbye before walking towards the duel arena.

Kai watched the young hunter leave, waving goodbye as he did. Drawing the warm air into his lungs, he breathed out heavily. "I'm kinda glad I approached him today, I hope things work out with Jaune though. Now, what was I doing?" his question stuck in his throat as a look of terror spread across his face, like a creaky door hinge he slowly turned his head to come face to face with over a dozen over-eager fans. The girls all looked up at him with a look of pure excitement, before the all leapt at him at once.

"Kai can I have your autograph!?"

"Please take a picture with me!"

"I can't believe that jerk made you cry!"

"Don't worry Kai, we'll look after you!"

A dozen squeals and cries rang out as the horde consumed Kai beneath their bodies. Pulling himself free, the hunter bolted towards the arena at full speed with a dozen girls screaming in excitement chasing after him.

"ALEEEEEEEEEEEEEX!"

* * *

**A/N I hope you enjoyed the chapter, this one is split into two parts, in my next chapter we'll get to see Jaune's duel as well as see how well Alex's training has paid off.**

**A huge thank you to Marthapaige96, your review was spectacular, I'm glad my writing can entertain people, thank you for the glowing praise.**

**If anyone wants to leave me their thoughts, then please feel free to do so.**

**Anyway enjoy the rest of your week and hopefully my next chapter will be up soon.**

**Ciao :)**


	14. Perverts and Duels!

**A/N So this chapter was a little more difficult to write. A lot of original characters were designed and that took more time and effort than I had anticipated. Never-the-less, here we are, I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

…**P****erverts and Duels!**

The arena hall was like Alex's second home. Since students spent most of their day in classes, the arena was relatively free, except for the odd time when Goodwitch would host duels pitting students against one another to gauge their abilities and progression. As it stood the arena was mostly free during the weekdays. Alex would train alone during the morning classes, train with Jaune during lunch, and then alone again during the evening classes. Alex didn't have much in the way of hobbies, and training was paramount to his profession. The look on Razlov's face should he return with dulled abilities caused the hunter to shudder.

His second home was packed to the walls with students eager to see the afternoon's fight. The large circular arena was crowded as hundreds of students eagerly discussed the approaching duel. From the few snippets of chatter Alex could discern as he made his way to a free seat, Nathaniel was the clear favourite to win, another second year that was steadily climbing the ranks of Beacon. With Jaune's reputation of being one of the worst hunters of the year, Alex couldn't exactly blame them for their comments. As he took a seat half way down the rows however, he grinned knowingly.

"I can't wait to see your reactions in a few minutes." His excitement radiated through his body, and he had to stop himself from shuddering with anticipation. "I'm so excited and I'm not even the one about to duel!" he exclaimed to his partner.

"_Even I can't help but be a little giddy; our boy is all grown up." _

A quick scan told Alex that Yang and the others hadn't arrived yet, he impatiently checked his scroll. Only fifteen minutes until the duel began.

"Where are they?"

"_If you're that lonely why not see if SHE is here?" _Arras suggested.

Alex picked up at his comment, given Alex's unofficial mission to seek out new recruits for Foresight he found himself watching more duels than the average hunter, however there was always one other person silently watching as well. He first noticed the girl, when he caught her doodling in her scroll rather than watching the fight. Since then he had been noticing her more and more. The one thing that struck him odd was that she always sat alone, not that he could say anything, he was no different, but where he knew his reasoning, he was curious about hers.

"_I've pinged her, on your left, three rows back."_

Sure enough as Alex turned he spotted her, sat alone, three rows back.

"Well, let's find out what she's up to." Slapping his knees he pushed himself to his feet and made his way to her. She was a small girl with a tiny frame; his first thoughts were that she didn't seem very intimidating; however he knew that hunters and huntresses took very different forms. Ability is what matters, not appearance. Her medium length brown hair grazed her shoulders, with it kept neatly in a ponytail at the back, tied in a red ribbon. Her fringe was kept out of her eyes by a bright green hairclip above her left eye. She gently tugged at the skirt of her uniform before resuming her sketch on her scroll.

"Hey there, mind if I sit here?" he called out as he approached. With a calm look and delicate movements, the young girl closed her scroll and gently set it on her lap.

"I do not mind at all." Her voice sounded elegant and sweet, she lightly gestured to the seat next to her, which Alex promptly took.

'Wow, this girl is polite, think she's upper class like Weiss?' he quickly asked his partner.

"_Urgh, another stuck up rich kid is not what I was hoping for, you deal with her, I'm going to sleep." _And with an annoyed response, Arras went quiet.

"I've seen you here a few times sitting alone and drawing in your scroll, I have to say, you made me curious." he admitted, flashing the girl a smile.

The huntress tilted her head in confusion, "Drawing? Oh no I was not drawing in my scroll but merely reading."

"Reading? My bad, I figured from the way you were always tapping your scroll with the stylus that you were drawing."

"Oh that? I was simply highlighting the important parts, should I ever feel the need to read it again." The girl spoke in a sweet voice, smiling back at the hunter.

"Sounds…confusing. What is it exactly you're reading?" he asked, moving the conversation along.

"An erotic novel."

If Alex had taken a swig of a drink, this is where he'd spit it out in astonishment.

"An erotic novel!" his surprised yell caused a few hunters to look his way. "You read those in public!" his voice a harsh whisper now.

Almost shocked at her own admission the girl quickly covered her mouth with a free hand. "Oh my, I'm so sorry, Professor Ozpin told me not to speak of my hobbies, and he told me others would not take it so kindly. I do again apologise." To almost affirm her words, the girl slightly bowed her head. The gentle movement caused her hair to fall forward and Alex quickly noticed a small set of brown mouse ears tucked away underneath.

"_A Faunus…a dirty, erotic novel reading Faunus, ASK HER WHAT SHE WAS HIGHLIGHTING?!" _Arras was far too excited.

'Hey! I thought you said you were going silent?' Alex reprimanded.

"_Right, like I'm gonna keep silent about this, now are you gonna ask her or not?"_

'Of course not, you pervert!'

"_I bet it's all the dirty sex scenes that get her going, you know what I mean?"_

Choosing the safer option of ignoring Arras, Alex gently shook his head. "No need for apologies, you just took me by surprise is all." He kindly admitted.

"Then…you don't find my hobby repulsive?" she asked curiously, a small tinge in her voice sounded hopeful. Once again the hunter shook his head.

"Trust me, at Foresight; there are a lot of…colourful characters, a girl who a favours erotic novels is hardly going to repulse me." He confessed, flashing the girl a smile.

She watched him curiously for a few moments, "Then, would you care to read it?" she asked calmly

"You show it to people!" he exclaimed, his outburst garnered another round of disapproving stares, to which Alex quickly shrunk down in embarrassment.

"Only to those who don't mind, most people refuse and then never speak to me again, but you said you didn't mind so…" taking a hold of her scroll she held it out to him, "Would you care for a read?" she asked the question so nonchalantly that Alex's head began to spin.

"_Take it! Find out what kind of freaky stuff this girl is into! Is it that vanilla crap, or is it two girls and a dude? *Gasp* or is it two dudes and one girl!" _Alex began to rub his temples at Arras's ramblings.

"If you are wondering what genre of novel it is, it's a romance story about two people who fall madly in love, however their love is forbidden and they fight against the world for what they truly want. It is such a sweet and passionate story, that I cannot put down. The two men in it are invigorating." The small girl was now blushing heavily and squirmed in her seat as she no doubt remembered certain scenes.

However, upon hearing of the two male lovers Alex gave a cheeky smile, 'Hey Arras, you still wanna read that story?' he asked knowingly.

"_Nah man, I'm…good" _The excitement now clearly gone from his voice.

"I'm not really that interested, thanks for the offer though…err." Alex trailed off as he suddenly remembered he had no idea what this girls name was.

"Bell, my name is Bell Rizumi." She gave another slight bow at her greeting.

"Alexander Cross, pleasure, though I suppose if you watch enough duels you probably saw me go up against Yang." After all it was the most talked about thing for a good week after.

"I apologise, but I did not witness your duel." She admitted outright.

"You didn't? But why…" Alex froze mid-sentence as every memory of him seeing her came rushing back. Every duel he spotted her, both combatants, were male.

'You have got to be kidding me, just how far does this girls fetish run?' he mused to himself.

"_Ask her why she loves dudes so much. Is it the penis, it's got to be the penis, it's the penis."_

Alex once again began rubbing his temple, "Dear god, I've got a pervert in front of me and a pervert in here."

"You have similar thoughts to me?" the small girl quickly asked, her eyes glistening.

"What? No, I wasn't…that's not what I meant." At Alex's firm denial, Bell shrank back into her seat.

"Oh…for a moment I thought we could be friends." The girl's sweet angelic voice was gone, only a dejected tone remained.

"No, that's not what I meant at all!" feeling a little overwhelmed, Alex took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "What I want to say is that I'll gladly be your friend." He confessed in a much calmer voice.

"In that case would you-" a small claxon signalled the imminent start to the duel.

"Damn it, where are they?!" complained Alex through gritted teeth.

"You are expecting company?" asked the young Faunus.

"Just some friends, they're supposed to be here by now." Alex couldn't hide his displeasure. Bell thought for a moment to herself.

"But you are with a friend are you not?" she pointed out, giving him a sweet smile. The smile was infectious and Alex returned it with his own.

"You're right, I'm with a friend and that's all that matters." His displeasure gone, Alex settled back into his seat, much to Bell's delight.

"There you are!" came an Angry bark, Alex turned to see Yang and the rest of team RWBY quickly take up seats next to him. Yang on his right, followed by Blake, Ruby and then Weiss. "Looks like we got here just in time." She added settling into her seat.

"Oh, so your friends are…all girls." Bell quietly muttered in a disapproving tone.

"_Oh that pause can't be good." _Arras quietly commented.

"You're here and that's all that matters." Alex was about to introduce the girls to Bell who was sat on his left, however Goodwitch's voice boomed through the arena silencing everyone.

* * *

**Break One**

* * *

"Good afternoon everyone, the duel between Nathaniel Sasaki and Jaune Arc is about to commence." The heavily packed arena hall was practically electrified with suspense.

"There are so many people here, is Nathaniel really that popular?" he asked turning to Yang.

"Well, I may have let slip that you were training Jaune." She confessed with a mischievous smile. Alex merely shook his head. Meanwhile Bell glared at Yang disapprovingly, not that the huntress noticed.

Goodwitch tapped her scroll and a large blue field slowly encompassed the combat field, the barrier which turned invisible once set was supposed to protect the audience from any stray bullets or explosions.

"_Shame the barrier doesn't cover the arena wall, could have saved you from some embarrassment against Yang."_

"Hello all!" bellowed a familiar orange haired girl.

"Nora! You guys made it." Ruby cheered, spotting the rest of team JNPR. Once the greetings were done, the team made for the seats in the row in front of them; however, before Pyrrah took her seat she turned to look at Alex.

"I look forward to seeing how Jaune will perform." Alex could feel a certain tension in her voice.

"Trust me, you won't be disappointed." He affirmed. With that she took her seat.

Once the stage was set a young man strode proud onto the arena hall, immediately the tension snapped as students bellowed out in a chorus of joy. Screams, whistles and shouts of encouragement rang out. Students jumped to their feet as the hall was deafened. Amidst the chaos team JNPR, RWBY, Alex and Bell sat silently, and all along, Alex was smiling.

Once the excitement died down and students returned to their seats Alex was now able to get a good look at Nathaniel. His face was hard set with stone like features, a constant look of disapproval etched onto his face; he had long shoulder length brown hair which he tied at the back into a ponytail. His body was tall and slender; his height was hard to judge from Alex's position, though he pegged him at over six foot tall. He wore a loose black jacket, which seemed several sizes too big for him; the front unbuttoned exposing his bare, chiselled chest. There was a satisfied gurgle from Alex's left; Bell was very much enjoying the show. He wore baggy black trousers, with what appeared to be a pair of sandals on his feet.

"_Didn't anyone tell this guy that they make clothes to fit, just looking at him pisses me off!" _

'Most likely it's for ease of movement, but you're right, there's baggy like my trousers and then there's just ridiculous' he couldn't help but mock the man.

Next the familiar looking Jaune Arc strode out, in his usual dark blue hoodie and light blue denim jeans. A few pieces of white metal armour covered his chest, back and biceps. The reaction was far more subdued, but there were still a few cheers and some clapping but nothing near Nathaniel's level. However, what Jaune's entrance lacked in numbers, team RWBY and JNPR more than made up for in noise.

"You got this Jaune!" Ruby screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Smash that dress wearing freak into the ground!" Yang bellowed, rising from her seat.

"Do your best!" Pyrrah cheered, cupping her hands around her mouth.

"Kill him!" Nora added much to the shock of a few students.

With a boyish grin and a gentle wave, Jaune waved to them all. His eyes rested on Alex, who merely nodded to him, Jaune nodded back before turning to face his opponent.

"Quite the boisterous friends you have there, shame they have come to watch another of your pitiful defeats." Nathaniel's voice was gruff with distaste; not even bothering to look at Jaune.

"Oh, are we going to fight? I was waiting for you to put a shirt on, or do you really plan on losing whilst wearing that?" Jaune's voice was light and playful; his mockery caught his opponent off guard, who snapped his head forward with a malicious glare.

"How dare you speak to a member of the Sasaki family like that, my family are known as renowned hunters and-"

"Cross dressing men?" Jaune finished the man's sentence for him. His opponent's anger bubbled within him, distorting his hard features into malice. "Sorry," the knight quickly apologised, "My new trainer is a bit harsh with his verbal beat downs, I've learned to keep up." Jaune's admission drew everyone's attention to Alex, who quickly looked at the accusing stares.

"What? My trainer did the same thing to me!" he adamantly confessed.

With all eyes back on the duel, Goodwitch stood between the two men. "You know the rules by now, the first to place their opponents Aura into the red will be declared the viktor. You have fifteen minutes. Any questions?" A moment of pause as the professor eyed the two combatants before gently pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Good." With an almost militaristic spin on her heel, Goodwitch walked to the side of the arena, opened up her scroll and yelled,

"Begin!"

Nathaniel charged forward with deceptive speed, till he was in striking distance. With powerful, quick swings, the raven haired man lashed out with his katana, the folded steel blade, almost as long as Nathaniel was tall slashed at Jaune's shield, sparks flew as metal bit into metal. Jaune disengaged putting a few paces between him and his opponent.

Nathaniel's weapon outmatched Jaune's in length, putting the knight at a severe disadvantage. However fighting an opponent with superior reach was something Jaune was used to, having fought Alex who wielded a duel blade staff. Eyeing his opponent with his deep blue eyes, Jaune raised his shield, and locked himself into a defensive stance. Nathaniel took the bait and lashed forward again, his anger at being ridiculed by an opponent considered his weaker, drove him into frenzy. With almost monster like slashes, Nathaniel cut at the shield with no mercy. Rings of metal on metal rang through the arena; Jaune began to feel the force as each attack sent shivers of pain through his shield arm. Pivoting his body, he angled his shield to deflect the blows away from him rather than take the impact head on, allowing him to mitigate the impact as to lessen the strain on his arm and Aura. Each blow Jaune deflected was slowly knocking Nathaniel off balance, until Jaune ducked under a wide slash at his left side, off balance and still carried by the momentum of his swing, Nathaniel was now exposed. The knight stepped forward, closing the distance. Slamming his shield into the samurai's right shoulder, he spun his body clockwise bringing his blade square into the back of Nathaniel's head, his Aura sparked defending him from an otherwise lethal strike. He was sent stumbling.

Shaking his head to clear the disorientation, he glared in twisted anger at his opponent only to blink in surprise as Jaune's shield flew through the air, connecting with his over exposed chest. Jaune bolted forward, leapt through the air catching his shield on the rebound before spinning to deliver a flying kick to his opponents head. This time Nathaniel was sent sprawling across the arena floor.

The crowd burst into a mixture of cheers and gasps of surprise. Pyrrah turned to Alex, and noticed a large smile on the young man's face.

"A clever trick throwing your shield!" Spat Nathaniel, as he rose to his feet.

"If it caught a Foresight member off guard I figured it would work on you too." Jaune added with a smile.

"Do not take me so lightly, boy!"

Nathaniel slowly sheathed his katana, a smile slowly painting his lips. With an elegant flourish the samurai brandished his blade and set it into the ground. The arena shook as a fissure carved its way through the arena floor towards the startled knight. Jaune rolled to his left, reacting on instinct alone. Re-sheathing his blade, Nathaniel slashed horizontally at his opponent; an arc of fire flew at the knight's head. Jaune ducked the assault, only to notice that Nathaniel had sent a column of ice his way, with only a single slash. Jaune was about to combat roll to the side, however a wall of earth erupted around him, sealing him in.

"He's got him in a box!" Nora bellowed in anger more than worry.

Boxed in by walls of earth on his sides and behind him, with an arc of fire at his head and ice coming straight on Jaune took the less of the two evils. Ducking low to avoid the fire, the knight readied his shield. With a roar, the fire connected with the walls, detonating them in a beautiful explosion around the young leader. At the same time the ice column connected, sealing his lower half, shield and all.

Nathaniel eyed his half-finished sculpture with twisted glee, "I underestimated you, and I'll admit that, however, the result of this battle is still the same!" With a roar of finality, the samurai charged forward. The suspense built as the crowd awaited the final blow.

Jaune raised his sword high, spun it in hand to face downwards and plunged it into his ice prison. As Nathaniel reached striking distance, the ice exploded in a mixture of shards and mist, covering the two opponents from the viewers expecting eyes. As the crowd erupted in whispers and chatter, the sound of battle could be heard from within the mist cloud. A gasp of surprise rang out as the familiar, loosely dressed man was sent across the arena floor scrambling to his feet, and quickly wiping his face to clear the cold vapour of the ice, temporarily blinding him.

As the mist cleared, Jaune could be seen, standing with shield in one hand and his trusty sword, coated in orange fire, in the other.

"When did he get _THAT_?" Ruby exclaimed, almost jumping out of her seat in excitement.

"When you went into town with him last month, you wouldn't tell us what you three did." Blake answered glancing at both Weiss and Alex. Weiss didn't respond, instead choosing to avoid eye contact, whilst Alex tapped his nose.

Sheathing his samurai blade once more Nathaniel stood straight and tall, now facing Jaune and maintaining eye contact. "It seems that once again I have underestimated you."

"You could say it's a nasty habit you have there." Mocked the knight. With only a slight twitch of annoyance in his left eye Nathaniel continued.

"So it would seem, never-the-less I must learn from my mistakes. I'm disgusted at myself that I must go all out against the likes of you, but, if it is the price I must pay to ensure victory, then so be it." Nathaniel shuddered slightly, his breathing became rapid and he swayed slightly. Colour drained from his face and visible beads of sweat began to litter his pale flesh. Jaune blinked in confusion, his guard relaxing slightly.

"Hey man, are you okay?" Jaune asked with genuine concern. Nathaniel merely shook his head, though even that motion seemed too much effort for the samurai.

"If you are so concerned…why not come take a closer look…" he gasped between strained breaths.

"Nah, I think I'm good right here." Jaune affirmed, tensing his body as he raised his guard.

Murmurs of worry began to ripple through the students.

"Is he okay, he looks like he's about to collapse." Alex voiced his concern, though from a quick inspection, everyone looked just as puzzled as him.

"Could it be some form of Semblance?" Blake added, only causing everyone to look more confused.

"A Semblance that causes exhaustion?" added Ruby.

"I never got to see Nathaniel's Semblance for myself." Spoke Yang thinking back to her duel with the Samurai.

"I've witnessed many of his duels but not once did he ever showcase his Semblance, so it may be possible." This time Pyrrah spoke up.

"If so, there must be an end game." Ren pointed out in his gentle tone.

Minutes ticked by as Jaune and the rest of the students watched the ill-looking hunter with anticipation.

There was a subtle change, almost unnoticeable, and Alex would have missed it if he had not been scrutinising Nathaniel with his trained vision.

"He's becoming strong again." Spoke Alex, rousing the group to their senses. Sure enough, Nathaniel's colour began to return to his skin, his balance steadied, and his beleaguered breaths return to normal. "I wonder what that was all about?" he added in confusion.

"Wait! Look at Jaune!" yelled Ruby.

Jaune never wavered from his spot. Rooted to the ground he fixed the samurai with his glare. The ill-looking hunter looked ready to collapse. That, and with Jaune's defensive capabilities, the young knight saw no reason to advance, rather, he would wait out his opponent. After a few minutes however, something changed. Jaune felt his breathing getting strained; each breath a trial, his shield and Dust Blade began to feel heavier, keeping them upright began to feel impossible. Meanwhile he watched in horror as Nathaniel grew healthier, with each second he grew weaker his opponent seemed to recover. With a loud clang his shield and blade slipped from his grasp, his strength abandoning him in an instant. Confusion and horror began to grip Jaune's heart. _What's happening to me? _His clothing felt like lead weights, even the small pieces of armour that adored his body seemed too much. Grasping at the straps he ripped the armour loose, tossing it aside, but it did nothin to help. Eventually the young man collapsed onto his hands and knees, as he struggled to keep himself from collapsing completely.

"It's a horrendous feeling is it not?" Nathaniel queried as he flicked some loose threads of hair from his face, looking stronger than ever. He fixed the knight with a malicious glare. "Behold my Semblance and crush under the weight of Gaia's Burden." Ripples of chatter spread through the crowd yet again. "A unique Semblance if there ever was one, once I trigger it all my strength and Aura leave my body, instead becoming like an invisible gas that permeates around me. It leeches into the bodies of any that get too close, sapping their strength and returning it to me. I knew you'd wait like a good dog, and give my Semblance time to undo you from within." The man's voice dripped with condescension.

Alex slammed his fist on his armrest, "That little punk, he used Jaune's own tactic against him!"

"He knew Jaune was the defensive type, he knew he'd wait for him to strike first." Blake calmly stated, Alex glanced at her; her tone gave him the impression that she thought the duel was already decided.

"Still a Semblance like that has great boons as well as terrible drawbacks." Weiss began to inform them, "If he's attacked whilst he's weak I doubt there would be much he could do to defend himself, still, if he was surrounded by multiple opponents, given some time he could neutralise all of them at once." Weiss almost sounded impressed.

"_Sounds like he'd make a great Hanta-Kira._" Added Arras.

Nathaniel looked down on his opponent with a look of triumph and pity. The knight desperately tried to keep himself on all fours. Jaune, his strength all but sapped, surprised Nathaniel yet again. He raised his head and smiled. "Ahh…this isn't so bad…feels the same…after I train with Alex...Ha-ha." The man's laugh was pitiful, yet it burned the look off of the samurai's face. With a blink of surprise, his face contorted with anger, before switching back to one of confidence.

"I wonder what's it's like to lose again and again, to be such a pitiful hunter that your own friends have to carry you. All of your failings and shortcomings, shouldered by those close to you. It seems you plan on dragging them down with you, too pathetic to support yourself. The burden you place on your friends is greater than that of my own Semblance." The arena fell silent; Nathaniel's words lingered in the air. The hunter went to speak again.

"Shut up!" before he spoke a word the knight cut him off with a shout that surprised everyone. "I am not a burden; I refuse to be a burden!" His head hung low, his blonde bangs shielding his features. "You want to know what it's like to be a loser of a hunter!? I despise it, I despise being weak, of being dead weight to a team who'd be far better off without me! All I wanted was to prove everyone wrong, to show them that I can do this, but they look at me, look at me with those eyes of pity! Pyrrah tried so hard to train me, yet every time I failed I could see it in her eyes, even though she tried so hard to hide it, I could see the pity!"

Pyrrah's hands cupped her mouth. "No Jaune," she whispered, "That's not true…"

"During my first year I was bullied, unable to stand up for myself, preyed on because I was weak, pathetic! When I went to get my dust blade Weiss didn't think I could master it, she thought I was useless, just stupid old Jaune, trying things he couldn't possibly comprehend!"

The heiress closed her eyes, biting her lip.

Arras watched through Alex's eyes, his senses tingled. To Arras he could almost see every Aura in the arena, each pulsed and shimmered with its own unique style. Yet right now Arras was blinded. In the centre arena an Aura so bright dwarfed the rest.

"What is Jaune doing?" asked Alex, bewildered at the sudden outburst.

'_His Aura is beginning to peak, it must be burning at his senses, the pain, coupled with disappointment, regret and anger...' _

"He's breaking down?" Alex asked, confused.

'_No, he's burning up; our little Jaune isn't out of the fight just yet.'_

Nathaniel stared bewildered at Jaune, he remembered back at his family estate, when he was only thirteen years old, when his Semblance first manifested itself in him. His instructors were left paralyzed on the ground, unable to move let alone yell and rant. 'This has gone on long enough, time to end this'

Raising his blade, he lashed forward with grace and speed. Thrusting his weapon directly at Jaune's head. The crowd snapped silent as Nathaniel's blade smashed against a gold light.

"He triggered it!" yelled Alex in disbelief. A pulsing hexagonal shield, no bigger than a person flashed a gold hue as it deflected the samurai's blade. Nathaniel stumbled back, unsure of what was happening. Jaune still struggled on all fours, yet it was clear that this shield must have been his doing. Quickly overcoming the moment of surprise, Nathaniel lashed around Jaune's right, thrusting the blade for his ribs. Yet again a second shield sparked to life in an instant absorbing the blow and sending the hunter reeling. Again and again Nathaniel struck for his opponent only to be blocked by more and more golden shields until Jaune himself was surrounded by them.

Feeling exhaustion overcoming him, the samurai retreated a few paces to catch his breath. "So what is this, your Semblance? Do you plan on hiding behind your shields like a coward!?" the hunter bellowed, anger overcoming his features, furious that his victory had been snatched away. "Or are you just going to wait out the timer settling for a draw, pathetic, you won't even attempt to take a victory, you're not even a real hunter! Why don't you just do everyone here a favour and quit!" Nathaniel voice boomed through the silent arena, everyone watched in a mixture of shock and anticipation.

Pyrrah turned to Alex, "Is what he saying true, has Jaune mastered his Semblance?" she asked, though sounding sceptical.

Alex sighed and folded his arms across his chest, "Over a week ago, Jaune and I were in the same position. We were training one day, I was about to best him when a similar gold shield blocked my attack. However, when Jaune tried to call up the shield himself he couldn't do it. He told me it was a spur of the moment feeling, that he wished not to lose, and suddenly the shield appeared to protect him." He explained. Everyone around him listened intently.

"What do you mean he can't call it up at will?" asked Blake curiously.

Alex responded with a shrug, "Jaune isn't a normal hunter; his semblance isn't like yours or mine. Though whilst his is very powerful, it's also very taxing on not just his Aura, but also his body. I'm worried he's pushing himself too hard, whatever he's planning down there; he needs to do it quick. I'm not looking forward to what'll happen if he burns up."

A loud grunt drew everyone's attention back to the fight, "Give up huh?" answered Jaune through strained breathes, "Yeah, I've definitely thought about doing that once or twice." He admitted, "But, too many people have tried too hard to see me quit. Even though they doubted me, they still tried to make me a better hunter. Pyrrah taught me the basics of being a hunter; Ruby showed me how to be a good leader. Ren and Nora were always there for me. Yang once told me she trusted me and Blake said that even though I wasn't strong like everyone else, that she admired my courage for trying. Weiss doubted me from mastering my Dust Blade but she still gave me the chance. And Alex, he pushed me harder than anyone ever has. So that's why," Jaune began to struggle, "Why!" he began to push himself onto his feet, "Why I won't let them down!" he bellowed standing tall.

"Ho-how is this possible, you should be a mess on the ground? How are you standing?!" Nathaniel stammered, unable to believe what he was witnessing.

"I'm only standing thanks to my friends; each and every one of them helped me get here. So I won't disappoint them. I'll show them, show you, that I'm Jaune Arc, and I _AM _a real hunter." Jaune raised a clenched fist, pointing it at Nathaniel, who took a step back. The golden shields began to pulse and move, floating in the air they hovered in front of Jaune. "Alex told me yesterday that he learned something valuable, he learned that a real hunter never stops pushing themselves. That a hunter that settles isn't a real hunter at all. That we should strive to become better, and once we've reached our limit, we should push even further. So you're right Nathaniel, I won't hide behind my shields like a coward." The golden shields began to tilt, till they pointed their razor sharp edges at the samurai, and one by one, they began to spin rapidly.

"Wait what are you doing!?" bellowed his opponent, terrified as he stared down over a dozen make shift saw blades.

"I'm proving a point!" he bellowed back.

"Wait, he's not going to-?!" Alex yelled, jumping to his feet.

"Hey, you're blocking my view!" yelled a nameless student, behind Alex.

"All shields, successive fire!" With a final yell Jaune opened his clenched fist. The shields burst forth, with a ripple that sounded like a machine gun. The first three projectiles slammed into the ground where the samurai was standing a split second ago, the hunter's reflexes saving him from being pummelled. As Nathaniel leapt away, two more fired in his direction, with perfect timing, he slashed at the two projectiles, sending them veering off course before detonating brilliantly against the arena barrier, causing the students behind it to yelp in surprise.

Before the samurai had time to react, another two struck from above, leaping away, the two shields crashed into the ground with such force that the whole arena shook.

"This is mad! What kind of Semblance is this!" barked Nathaniel, fear clutching at his heart. His eyes widened in fear, as several golden shields surrounded him.

"Imprison!" yelled Jaune; the shields slammed together forming a large bubble around the samurai, sealing him in. Panicked and afraid, the hunter began to lash out at his prison. His katana cut against the golden, paper-thin walls to no avail.

Jaune lunged forward, creating a sliver of a gap in the prison wall, he plunged his blade through it. Nathaniel backed against the far wall, just out of reach of the blades tip.

"Ha-hahaha, seems you can't quite get me." Stammered the hunter with a nervous disposition, before watching Jaune carefully place his finger on a trigger on his swords handle. "No, wait, what do you think you are doing!?" he screamed.

"As you said, Nathe, a real hunter always goes for the victory." With a simple press of his finger, the Dust blade ignited in brilliant orange fire, which immediately consumed the inside of the prison. Nathaniel's screams rang out as his Aura depleted in seconds, protecting him from the raging inferno. The claxon blared overhead, and Jaune immediately retracted the blade, extinguishing its flames, before dissipating the shields. Black smoke billowed out, until everyone watched Nathaniel slump to his knees, before falling over, unconscious.

There were a few moments of stunned silence, Goodwitch snapped to her senses, she too was so enraptured what she witnessed, she momentarily forgot to announce the victor.

"Well after that startling performance from both hunters, it would appear that Jaune Arc has seized victory over a far more experienced opponent, thanks to hard work and dedication." Like a snapping rubber band, the crowd erupted into cheers and screams of delight.

"Would you look at that?" Spoke Yang, "Seems we all underestimated Alex's training." She added jokingly.

"For a minute there I forgot that was Jaune fighting, he seems so much more…capable." Added Weiss.

"What are we waiting for lets go congratulate him!" bellowed their young leader. Everyone including Alex and Bell followed them down to the arena rooms to meet the winner.

"Are you not coming Pyrrah?" Asked Nora, turning to her friend. Ren stopped as well, whilst everyone else went on ahead. Pyrrah still remained seated.

"You heard Weiss, she didn't even recognise Jaune. He's changing." She added, her tone held sadness.

"But that's a good thing right?" cheered Nora in her usual chipper voice, "A strong Jaune is a good Jaune!"

"Is that what we really want?" she asked, turning to her friends. Both of their faces fell grave when they noticed the wetness in Pyrrah's eyes.

"What is wrong Pyrrah?" asked Ren in his usual calm tone.

"What we witnessed wasn't Jaune, he would never imprison someone, and then…then burn them into submission. No, that is something only a heartless hunter would do!" she spat, her sadness turning to anger.

"Pyrrah, do you think there is something wrong with Jaune?" Nora's voice was quiet and uneasy.

"I think that he's becoming too much like _him! _ He's becoming too much like Alex, and I won't let that happen!"

* * *

**Break Two**

* * *

The Eternity Forest, Remnants largest woodland, teemed with life and Grimm. Its usual thick moisture stuck in the air, wrapping itself around everything. The air was thick and humid, and a burning sun bathed the forest in swathes of light. The trees acting like a natural sunblock for the creatures that lurked on its wet soil.

"Now isn't this place something special?" boomed a jolly voice, a large round man gave a chortle at his own words, listening to his laughter echo through the trees. He wore plain black suit trousers with a white button up shirt, the top few buttons were left undone exposing the top half of his hairy chest as well as having his sleeves rolled up. He ran his fingers through his grey, well kempt hair.

"Oh yeah it sure is!" complained another man behind him, as he swatted his neck, killing his umpteenth mosquito. Fixing his bowler hat, he gently brushed his bright orange hair over his right eye.

"Come now Torchwick," boomed the larger man turning to face his companion. "A little expedition is good for you every once in a while."

Torchwick straightened his jacket, "We wouldn't even be here if you're little monsters did their job like you said they would!"

The rotund man's jolly stature vanished in an instant, "If I recall it was you who came grovelling to me needing help to take care of a few measly students. I wonder what Cinder see's in such a useless lieutenant?" His voice was firm and left no room for argument.

"Albec, sir!" Two men in onyx black suits approached the large man, "We have retrieved an ocular device." Explained the henchman holding out what appeared to be a metallic ball.

"Ocular device? Is this why we're here?" Asked Torchwick, curious to get a better look at the small contraption. The larger man took a hold of the device before holding it up to the sunlight.

"This marvellous piece of technology was gifted to me from the Harpy." He spoke, as he observed the device.

"The Harpy? You mean the Harpy of Mistral, another Lord." Torchwick asked.

"What is the matter Torchwick, you seem confused?" Albec asked, turning to face the man with a knowing grin.

"I was under the impression Lords weren't supposed to be all chummy with one another?" he pointed out.

"And why is that, aiding a Lord means they owe you, and the debt of a Lord is a powerful thing to hold." Albec spoke as a matter of fact.

"You're talking about Cinder aren't you, you think helping me means she owes you?"

"Not at all, you owe me; I don't need anything from that stuck up little bitch!" Albec spat, refusing to even speak Cinders name. Torchwick twitched a little, hearing his Lord being mocked in front of him, but choose to stay his tongue.

"Now as I was saying, I had these ocular devices installed in my beauties," Torchwick flinched hearing the man call Grimm 'beauties' "It records everything they see, it should tell us how they were defeated."

"Especially after you boldly claimed they were invincible." Torchwick mocked with a shrug. Albec whirled on the young man.

"My creations were the pinnacle of artificial Grimm! Primary, Secondary and tertiary organs were implanted, with cellular regeneration so advanced it practically negated death!" the man spat, his eyes bulging whilst his jowls shook. Torchwick looked away, unamused. Taking a step back and a deep breath he ran his finger through his thinning silver hair. "Show me what's on the device!" he barked at his henchmen. The second man removed a small laptop from a bag before holding it open for Albec and Torchwick to see. The first henchman placed the ocular device into a small opening on the laptop, after a few soft murmurs the screen flickered to life. The two men peered curiously at the screen, footage of the monster viewpoint, running through the dense forest, occasionally stopping to scan its surroundings before bounding off again at full speed.

"Fast Forward." Ordered Albec. The suited man pushed a button for a few seconds.

"Wait!" barked Torchwick; the man immediately released the button. The footage was now of a golden dome, the creatures view was pacing back and forth, its gaze fixated on a blonde girl inside.

"What am I looking at Torchwick?"

"That's Yang Xiao Long, one of the students I need disposed of." He answered staring intently at the screen. Noticing her ripped clothing Albec gave a short chortle.

"Looks like my pets are taking care of her just fine." He added with pride. The men watched as the golden dome burst and the creatures lash forward, they both blinked in surprise as an explosion sent the creatures flying. After a few moments the monsters were back on their feet; however a young man clad in green stood before them.

"And who is this, another student?" asked Albec. Torchwick's eyes widened in surprise.

"The demon?" he quietly muttered.

The two men quietly watched as the green hunter fought ferociously against the two monsters, both took glee in watching the creature sink its teeth into the young man's shoulder blade, and both sighed in anger when Yang saved the man from certain death. Now the two men watched as the monster fought against the golden haired huntress, and were now watching its blurry vision as it was swung about like a rag doll.

"Mighty fine job your 'beauty' is doing." Mocked Torchwick. Albec's face merely scrunched in anger.

"Yang! Restrain it!" yelled the young man's voice. The men now watched as the two hunters pinned the monster, the girl held its jaws open and both stood over it, glaring into its eyes. For the first time Albec got a good look at the two hunters. The young man's arm set alight with green fire, "You want something to eat? Eat this!" the man's arm vanished into the creature mouth. The creatures dying screams echoed from the laptop as Albec watched his precious creation devoured in green flames, whilst the two hunters glared into its eyes. And with sudden finality, the screen went black.

"Fascinating…absolutely fascinating!" Bellowed the jovial man.

"Fascinating? He killed your experiments." Torchwick pointed out, confused why the man was in such high spirits.

"Don't you understand, every experiment is never a failure. Today I have learned something valuable, that young man possesses the key to the next stage of my creations! You called him Demon, why?"

"He's been a nightmare to our operations. Killing men, raiding our products, he's placed my men in a state of fear and panic." Torchwick turned to the darkened screen of the laptop, "Though, his eyes were silver." He muttered quietly.

"Were you not expecting him to be there?"

"Actually I was hoping he would be, I've seen him with blondie before, if luck was on my side he would have joined them on their mission and be Grimm food like the rest of them." Torchwick shrugged, "Shame luck wasn't kind to me, looks like he's still alive and he killed your pets. It seems I'll have to find another way for him to go on a permanent vacation." He finally explained.

"Then capture him and bring him to me alive." Albec ordered turning and walking away.

"Sorry there, but I don't do 'alive' besides when did I start taking orders from you?"

Albec stopped in his tracks before slowly turning to face the cocky man. "I have been tasked by the Patriarch himself with discovering how the Grimm evolution process works. Through years of study and technological breakthroughs, we have learnt how to capture Grimm, how to prevent their bodies from dissipating into mist after death. We have unlocked the very foundations of their DNA and can now play God with their genetic structure. The best minds on Remnant, and a monetary expense that could buy out entire nations has been spent on making this dream, my dream, the Patriarch's vision come to bear fruit. And a snot nosed little shit in a bowler hat is going to defy me, defy our masters will!" Albec's voice rose with each word till he was screaming in Torchwick's face, spittle flying; his eyes bulged from his rotund head. "Restrain him!"

Without second thoughts, two henchmen gripped the man's arms, delivering swift kicks to the back of both of his legs, dropping him to his knees.

"Hey! Watch the suit!" barked Torchwick as he found himself subdued, he tried to wriggle free but the men held his arms like a vice.

"I think I've tolerated your insolent tongue long enough, if Cinder won't teach her lieutenants how to respect those above them, then it seems the job falls to me." A third henchman approached the Lord, snapping open a small briefcase. Albec reached inside, removing a small syringe gun, it's menacingly thin needle glistened in the sunlight. A thick black liquid swirled inside the syringe. "Harpy wasn't the only Lord to gift me something for my aid. This curious fluid is capable of so much, or, so I'm told. Now, I'm not much of a fan of mixing human DNA with Grimm essence, but it is one of our Master's will, so I'll let it go. Besides, Piper has made some extraordinary advances in his field."

Torchwick began to struggle beneath the men's grasp, suddenly getting a good idea of exactly what that fluid was.

"Apparently injecting this serum directly into a human's veins is all it takes to begin the process, does that not sound incredibly efficient." Albec now stood over the poor man, his bulging eyes glaring at him. "Of course I'm told the results are rather hit and miss. If you are fortunate, the Grimm essence will merge perfectly with your body, and you will become stronger, faster, you might even transform, unlocking some unique Grimm ability of your own. That said, if you are unfortunate, your body will be consumed with pain, every fiber of your being will beg for release, your howls will be heard throughout this entire forest, as you tear and claw at your own flesh. Blood will pour from your eyes and out your ears, as you rip your own body apart driven mad by pain. A most excruciating death. Now tell me…" One of the henchmen tossed the man's bowler hat away, pulling his ginger hair to the right in order to expose the man's neck. With a deft hand movement, Albec plunged the needle into his soft flesh. Torchwick's whole body froze in terror, his body began to sweat, and if it had not been for the men gripping him tightly, he would be shaking uncontrollably. "…which one do you think you'll be?" Albec threatened, all that stood between Roman and certain death, was the single squeeze of a trigger. Torchwick could feel the foreign entity inside his own neck, the thought of even a drop of that fluid entering his system, caused his heart to violently beat in his chest.

The seconds ticked by painfully slow, Roman didn't make a single sound, he knew now more than ever that speaking out of place would bring him a painful death, something he would very much like to avoid. Suddenly the sweet relief of the needle being extracted rushed his senses. The henchmen released him at the same time. Torchwick collapsed on all fours, panting heavily. Droplets of sweat ran down his face, dripping from the tip of his nose.

"Of course, I only have one of these, and I have no intention of wasting it on a rat like you. You were saved, by only how insignificant you are. However, you speak to me with such disrespect again, well…" Albec patted the case with the now sealed syringe. He didn't have to say anymore.

"I will be sending one of my lieutenants to capture the hunter. I expect you to give her everything she needs to complete her mission. You know what will happen to you if she reports otherwise. My men will take you back to Vale." Albec glared at the man a second longer, before turning to walk away.

"Can I ask who exactly your lieutenant is?" Spoke Roman as he gingerly got back to his feet.

Albec turned to the man once more, "Her name is Blanc; you will find her to be most…efficient."

* * *

**Break Three**

* * *

Atlas could be considered by most to be the prominent continent in all of Remnant. Its lands unusually rich with Dust minerals, it soon became the centre for the Schnee Dust Company, helping to boost its economy to heights the other kingdoms could only dream of. Atlesian military was also second to none. In order to protect the many Dust facilities and shipments that sourced most of the world, Atlesian military advance at a staggering rate. Brilliant minds also flocked to Atlas to join the renowned Cera Academy, a school for the gifted geniuses of the world, their ideas helped shape the world, from the Cross Continental Transmit System to allow the four kingdoms to communicate with one another, to the handheld scrolls that almost every person on Remnant possesses. Though if you ask most people from the other kingdoms what they think of first when someone mentions Atlas, it would be the cold. Snowstorms and temperature rarely above 10 degrees centigrade was native to the northern most continent.

On a long deserted road, its sides hugged by the snow-covered treetops all around and bathed in the light of a clouded moon. Three stark black SUV's roared along its frozen top, their headlights cutting swathes through the murky darkness.

In stark contrast to the cold, unforgiving weather outside, the SUV interiors were warm and comforting. Their rich leather seats adding luxury whilst the internal heating kept Atlas's chill at bay. In each SUV, four men in black suits drove along the desolate road in silence. However the vehicle in the middle was kept a buzz by one man sat in the centre back seat flanked by two bodyguards. Dressed in a white neatly pressed suit he sat with a small laptop opened on his lap, his fingers whirled across its keys typing at a rate of someone with practice. The bodyguard in the front passenger seat looked back at his charge, before pulling up his radio.

"Homestead this is Valkyrie, come in over." The man's voice was steady and firm. The radio quickly buzzed to life.

"Valkyrie this is Homestead, we read you, over." spoke a similar militaristic voice.

"We've just entered the backwoods now, if the weather holds our E.T.A. should be twenty minutes, over." He informed the man on the radio.

"Copy that Valkyrie, Homestead awaits your return." With confirmation, the guard placed the radio into a small bank located between him and the driver.

Five minutes passed in silence, as the man fidgeted more and more. He watched the same stark white scenery flash by his window and watched as snowdrops began to lazily fall to the ground. The looming clouds blanketed out the moons glow, leaving the headlights of each SUV as their only source of light. The man glanced at the vehicles dashboard.

20MPH

"Seriously can't we go a little faster?" he asked, finally growing impatient.

"You know the rules, Damon drives the first car, so he decides the speed, and we follow suit." pointed out the driver. Despite their professions, the driver spoke to the young man in a familiar tone, as if he was like an older brother trying to keep an agitated younger brother who couldn't keep still on a family trip, in check.

"Uuuuurgh, can't we just tell him to go faster?" he pleaded, locking eyes with the driver. The larger man sighed in resignation, before picking up the radio.

"Damon, this is Marek, Taren here needs to go to the bathroom, any chance we could pick up the pace a little?"

"The snows starting to get heavy and we're not sure how icy this road is." Another man's voice crackled over the radio.

"We're driving in a straight line Damon." Marek pointed out giving a sly grin to his friend. There was an audible sigh over the radio.

"Fine, all vehicles, increase speed by ten miles per hour and stay clo-" The first car detonated into a ball of flames, the snapping explosion shattered the silence they had enjoyed for so long.

"What the-!" Gripping the steering wheel, Marek, spun the car around the wreckage, drifting as he passed.

"Sir, get down!" the two men in the back pushed the white suited man onto the vehicles floor, one of them pressing their body on top of him.

"Cameron you still with us!?" this time Taren had grabbed the radio as he looked out the rear window to the SUV behind them. He watched as it pulled the same maneuver they did around the wreckage.

"Cameron here, we're still good, what the hell happened!?" he barked, tension in his voice.

"No idea, Damon's car just went up in a fireball, keep your heads on a swivel!" Taren ordered, his voice wavering as he desperately tried to keep the fear in his heart from leaking out in his voice.

"Copy tha-" Taren watched in horror as the vehicle behind them exploded brilliantly, its bright light blinding the young man. He could only watch as the flaming wreckage of his friends tumbled along the icy road.

"No, Cameron's gone…" the man mumbled.

"Hey!" barked the larger man, shaking him from his stupor. "Focus, we still have a job to do! Pat, get on the gun, I need eyes out there!"

"Roger!" the man in the back seat, who was not shielding the VIP, pressed a button on the roof. A small panel slid back, exposing the warm interior to the harsh could outside. Pushing himself up the man was assaulted by the freezing cold and high winds, but he didn't care. His training and adrenaline had put such worries to the back of his mind. Gripping the roof mounted minigun on top he swivelled it around 360 degrees, scanning their surroundings.

"You see anything!?" Marek yelled over the sound of high wind.

"Nothing yet, I…" Patrick's voice faltered as his trained vision spotted something distant down the road. "…I think, I think I see a young woman on the road!?" he yelled back.

"We're under attack; the VIP's safety is our top priority, shoot first, answers later!" Marek ordered.

"Roger!" without hesitation, Patrick squeezed the two triggers located on each of the gun's handles. The minigun whirled into life, before discharging 6,000 rounds a minute. The gun drowned out all noise, as bullet casings were spat out onto the road. Two large disk like weapons spun rapidly in front of the young woman, shielding her from certain death.

"It looks like we have our assailant!" the man roared, trying to be heard over the sound of the minigun.

"Keep her pinned!" Marek yelled back, "You can stop bullets, but just try and stop me." He muttered to himself.

"Wait, you're going to hit her?!" Taren blurted out in dis-belief.

"Everyone, brace!" Marek slammed on the acceleration pedal, as the SUV hit high speeds. All the while, Patrick held the trigger, raining bullets down on their attacker.

Just as the vehicle was about to make contact, the minigun overheated, its raining death came to an abrupt halt. In that moment, the woman struck. A single circular blade shot forward at incredible speed. It effortlessly cut though the cabin of the vehicle. Marek and Taren were the first to die, the blade cut through at perfect neck height, decapitating them both. Then Patrick, stood upright in the vehicle his body was sawn in two. The SUV skidded out of control as the top half of the cabin slid off the vehicle turning it into a make-shift convertible; it slammed into an embankment off to the side of the road, throwing up snow as it did. After a few seconds, everything fell silent again.

The final bodyguard was still lying over the VIP; his low posture saved him and his charge from the blade. He slowly looked up, his body shaking; two headless bodies sat in the front seats, whilst a lower body was slumped over him. Trying to keep his fear and nausea in check, the man slowly pushed the set of legs off of him. His black suit stained in blood. Reaching down, he gently unholsterd his sidearm.

"Are you mad!?" the white suited man whispered harshly. "You'll be killed, our only hope now is to try and negotiate!"

"Sorry sir, we don't negotiate with terrorists. Besides, this bitch killed my friends; with any luck she might think we're all dead. I'll take her by surprise." He whispered back. Both men fell silent as the sound of snow crunching under footsteps could be heard approaching. The guard pinpointed her location before throwing himself up, pistol drawn. He hadn't even been able to squeeze the trigger, when a circular blade cut the man's head clean off.

The VIP screamed in terror as the headless body fell on top of him, splashing his pristine white suit in deep red. Despite there being no top half to the vehicle the man still frantically opened the passenger door on the opposite side, crawling out as he did. He scurried desperately away through the grass and snow.

"And where do you think you are going?" came a soft gentle, womanly voice. The man spun in horror, scurrying back against a tree trunk, hands waving frantically in front of him.

"Oh god no, please don't kill me!" he screamed in desperation, "I-I'll give you whatever you want! M-money? Power? I can give you it all just please I'm begging you I don't want to die!" the man's pleas descended into drivel as tears began to flow down from his face.

"You really are pathetic aren't you?" the woman's insult caught the man by surprise, through wet eyes he looked up to his assailant.

The girl looked no older than her teens, with soft delicate features that were accentuated by her bright magenta eyes and stark white hair that flowed down to her legs. Her outfit looked ridiculously out of place for Atlas's climate. She wore a long sleeved crop top that left her midriff exposed with a sleeveless, unbuttoned jacket over the top. Her hands, forearms, shoulders and legs were all covered with dark steel plated armour. She wore leggings and black high heeled boots and a revealing short skirt that exposed her upper thighs. A small cap sat on top her head. Her entire outfit was dark blue, with silver accents on her jacket, and on the frills of her skirt.

The man would have been taken aback by her striking beauty had it not been for her devilish look. "How ignorantly pathetic you are." The young girl spat. "Do you even know why I attacked you?"

The man, heart froze in fear began to mumble an answer. "You probably know I'm from the SDC, y-you want something from me, right?"

The girl nodded in satisfaction, "Well you're not wrong, still, I was hoping the guards of an SDC director would be far more entertaining. I have to say I'm very unimpressed." The girl shrugged, bored.

The man could only blink in dis-belief. She had killed twelve men, yet looked like a child who was unimpressed by her birthday gift. "I-it's not all a waste, if you let me live, I can give you whatever you want." The man stammered, a small semblance of himself returning.

"Anything I want you say?" the girl mused as she tapped her chin, "Then I'll take…your life."

"Wha-" a large circular blade fell from the sky, slamming into the helpless man. The blade spun rapidly sawing through the VIP. His blood splashed the white snow, and the young girl.

Raising a hand she gently wiped the blood from her face. "A pleasure doing business with you." She spoke as she politely curtsied the corpse. A small chime, notified her of a new message. "A new assignment already, how exciting." Quickly retrieving her scroll from a pocket she opened the new message, her face turned sour at the subject heading.

Blanc: Detain and capture

She puffed her cheeks disapprovingly. "Capture mission? How tedious." She complained as she began to scroll through the message. As she read her face began to light up. "Detain and capture a hunter? I've never done that before, I wonder who it is." She added excitedly as she quickly skimmed the message contents getting to the details below. A name popped up along with a picture that looked like it was captured from a recording, it showed a young man clad in green wielding two blades. The girls smile widened as her eyes began to glisten.

"Alexander Cross? My, what a handsome young man you are." She spoke as she dragged a blood stained glove over the picture.

"I sure do hope you prove to be far more entertaining." Snapping her scroll shut, Blanc set of for Vale.

* * *

**A/N So it seems that Alex's carefree life at Beacon will soon come to an end. Forces are starting to make their move. Alex will have to decide soon, will he go it alone, or will he drag his new friends into hell with him.**

**But before that Arras has been feeling a little cooped up, sounds like he could do with stretching his legs.**

**Thank you for reading this, I know I say that at the end of every chapter but I mean it.**

**Feel free to leave a review or follow for more, thanks again! :)**


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